^, 


vO^  "^A  YW 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


I.I 


11.25 


l^|28    |25 


'/ 


Fhotograiiric 

Sciences 

Corporaiion 


23  WIST  MAIN  STMIT 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  USSO 

(716)  •72-4503 


CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

Series. 


CIHJVI/iCIVlH 
Collection  de 
microfiches. 


Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


'■■■^IBlipjJS-it 


Tachnical  and  BIbliographie  Not«s/NotM  t«chniqu««  at  bibliographiquas 


Tha  Instituta  haa  attamptad  to  obtain  tba  baat 
original  copy  availabia  for  filming.  Faaturaa  of  thia 
copy  whicli  may  ba  bibliographically  uniqua. 
which  may  altar  any  of  tha  imagaa  in  tha 
raproduction.  or  which  may  aignificantly  changa 
tha  uaual  mathod  of  filming,  ara  chackad  balow. 


□   Colourad  covara/ 
Couvartura  da  couiaur 


|~n   Covara  damagad/ 


D 


n 


n 


D 


13 


Couvartura  andommagia 


Covara  raatorad  and/or  laminatad/ 
Couvartura  raatauria  at/ou  pallicuiAa 


I     I   Covar  titia  misaing/ 


La  titra  da  couvartura  manqua 


I     I   Colourad  mapa/ 


Cartaa  gAographiquas  m\  couiaur 


Colourad  inic  (i.a.  othar  than  biua  or  biacit)/ 
Encra  da  couiaur  (i.a.  autra  qua  blaua  ou  noira) 


I     I   Colourad  plataa  and/or  illuatrationa/ 


Pianchaa  at/ou  illuatrationa  an  couiaur 


Bound  with  othar  matarial/ 
Mali*  avac  d'autraa  documanta 


Tight  binding  may  cauaa  ahadowa  or  diatortion 
along  intarior  margin/ 

La  re  liura  aarria  paut  cauaar  da  I'ombra  ou  da  la 
diatortion  la  long  da  la  marga  intiriaura 

Blank  laavaa  addad  during  raatoration  may 
appaar  within  tha  taxt.  Whanavar  poaaibla.  thaaa 
hava  baan  omittad  from  filming/ 
11  aa  paut  qua  cartainaa  pagaa  bianchaa  ajoutiaa 
lora  d'una  raatauration  apparaiaaant  dana  la  taxta. 
mala,  loraqua  cala  Atait  poaaibla.  caa  pagaa  n'ont 
paa  «t«  filmAaa. 


Additional  commanta:/ 
Commantairaa  supplAmantairaa: 


Vartoui  paging*' 


L'Inatitut  a  microfilm*  la  maillaur  axamplaira 
qu'il  lui  a  it*  poaaibla  da  aa  procurar.  Laa  d*taiia 
da  cat  axamplaira  qui  aont  paut-Atra  uniquaa  du 
point  da  vua  bibliographiqua,  qui  pauvant  modifiar 
una  imaga  laproduita.  ou  qui  pauvant  axigar  una 
modification  dana  la  m*thoda  normala  da  filmaga 
aont  indiquAa  ci-daaaoua. 


T* 
to 


Tl 


r~n  Colourad  pagaa/ 


Pagaa  da  couiaur 

Pagaa  damagad/ 
Pagaa  andommag*aa 

Pagaa  raatorad  and/or  laminatad/ 
Pagaa  raataur*aa  at/ou  pallicul*«a 

Pagaa  diacoloured,  atainad  or  foxad/ 
Pagaa  d*color*aa,  tachat*aa  ou  piquAea 

Pagaa  datachad/ 
Pagaa  d*tach*aa 

Showthrough/ 
Tranaparanca 

Quality  of  print  variaa/ 
Qualit*  in*gaia  da  I'impraaaion 

Includaa  aupplamantary  matarial/ 
Comprand  du  mat*rial  auppiimantaira 

Only  adition  availabia/ 
Saula  Mition  diaponibia 


of 
fit 


Or 
bo 

th< 
aic 
ot 
fir 
al( 
or 


D 


Pagaa  wholly  or  partially  obacurad  by  arrata 
alipa.  tiaauas.  ate.  hava  baan  rafilmad  to 
enaura  tha  baat  poaaibla  imaga/ 
Las  pagaa  totaiamant  ou  partiallemant 
obacurcias  par  un  fauiilat  d'arrata,  una  pelure, 
ate,  ont  *t*  film*as  *  nouvaau  da  fa^on  * 
obtanir  la  maillaura  imaga  poaaibla. 


Th 
ah 
Til 
wl 

Ml 

diff 
•m 
b« 
rigl 
raq 


Thia  itam  is  filmad  at  tha  reduction  ratio  chackad  balow/ 

Ca  document  aat  film*  au  taux  da  r*duction  indiqu*  ci-daaaoua. 

10X  14X  ItX  22X 


26X 


30X 


y 

■ 

12X 


16X 


20X 


24X 


28X 


32X 


Th«  copy  fllm«d  twra  ha*  bMin  raproducMl  thanks 
to  th«  OMMTMity  of: 

Univanity  of  SMkatehtwM 


L'oxomplairo  film*  f ut  roprodult  grico  A  la 
g4nAro«ltA  do: 

Unhranity  of  SMkatohMVMi 

BwliitooH 


quality 
logiblllty 
tho 


Tho  Imagoo  appoaring  horo  aro  tho 
poaolbiit  conoidoring  tho  condition 
of  tho  original  copy  and  In  kaoping 
filming  contraet  apoolf teatlono. 


Original  coploa  In  printod  papor  eovoro  aro  fllmod 
boglnning  with  tho  front  covor  and  onding  on 
tho  loot  pago  with  a  printad  or  llluotratad  Improa- 
•lon.  or  tho  back  covor  whon  opproprlata.  All 
othor  original  coploa  aro  fllmod  boglnning  on  tho 
first  pago  with  a  printad  or  llluatratod  Improo- 
•lon,  and  onding  on  tho  kMt  pago  with  a  printad 
or  llluatratad  Impraaaton. 


Tho  last  recorded  frama  on  oach  microfiche 
shaH  contain  tho  symbol  — »>  (moaning  "CON- 
TINUED"), or  tho  symbol  ▼  Imoaning  "END"), 
whichavor  applies. 


Los  Images  suivantos  ont  4t*  reproduites  avec  Is 
plus  grand  soin.  compte  tenu  do  la  condition  at 
do  lo  notteti.  do  I'oxempleire  film*,  et  en 
conformM  avec  ios  conditions  du  contrat  do 
fllmoge. 

Lee  exemplaires  originaux  dont  la  couverture  en 
papier  est  imprimis  sent  filmis  en  commonpent 
par  la  premier  plat  et  en  terminent  soit  par  la 
dernMre  pege  qui  comporto  une  emprelnte 
d'Improeslon  ou  d'lllustratlon.  soit  par  la  second 
plat,  salon  lo  cae.  Tous  Ios  eutres  exemplelres 
originaux  sent  film^s  en  commonpent  par  la 
premlAre  page  qui  comporto  une  emprelnte 
d'impression  ou  d'lllustratlon  et  en  terminent  par 
la  darniAre  page  qui  comporto  une  teihi 
emprelnte. 

Un  dos  symbolos  suh^ents  apparaftra  sur  la 
dernlAro  imege  do  cheque  microfiche,  selon  ie 
caa:  lo  symbde  -^  signifie  "A  SUIVRE".  Ie 
symbole  ▼  signifie  "FIN". 


piatoa.  charts,  etc.,  may  bo  filmed  at 
different  reduction  ratios.  Thoee  too  large  to  be 
entirely  included  in  one  expoeure  ere  filmed 
boglnning  In  the  upper  left  hand  comer,  left  to 
right  and  top  to  bottom,  as  many  frames  es 
required.  The  following  diagrams  illustrate  tho 
method: 


Los  certes,  pienchos,  tableaux,  etc.,  pouvont  Atro 
fllmte  i  doe  taux  da  rMuctlon  diffirents. 
Lorsque  Ie  document  est  trop  grend  pour  Atre 
roprodult  en  un  soul  ciich*.  II  est  f  ilmA  A  portir 
do  Tengio  supArieur  geuche,  do  geuche  A  droite, 
et  do  haut  en  bos,  on  prenant  ie  nombre 
d'imeges  nAcessaire.  Los  dfagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  mAthode. 


r  — — — — — ^— — — — ^— 

1  2  3 


32X 


1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

History 


OF 


OREGON   AND    CALIFORNIA. 


t  I 


THE 


HISTORY 


OF 


OREGON  AND  CALIFORNIA, 


AND   TUB 


OTHER   TERRITOKIEsi'.^^^Is— 

%7U^  ■ 


ON   THE 


NORTH-WEST  COAST  OF  NORTH  AMERICA; 

•  ACCOMPANIED   BY    A 

GEOGRAPHICAL    VIEW    AN 

OP  THOSE  COUNTRIES,      ff  »   IBRARY 

AND  A   NUMBER  OF   DOCUMENTS   AS 

PUOOFS  AND  ILLUSTRATIONS  OF  THE 


BY 


c^i^e^i*^'^ 


ROBERT  GBEENHOW, 


TRIkNHLATOR     AND     LIBRARIAN     TO    THE     USPARTHERr     OF     8TATB   OF    THE   OHITBO     KTATIi  ;      AUTHOR 

OF  A  MBMUIR,  HISTORICAL  AND  FOLITICAL,  ON  THF.  NOHTH-WEHT  COAST  OF  NORTH  AMBHICA. 

I'lIIILIflHEII    IN    1840,    i<¥    nlRECTIUN   OF    THE    DBNATE    OF    THE    UNITBD    9TATBII. 


"THF.  POSSIBLE  DESTINV  OF  THE  UNITED  STATES  OF  AMERICA,  AS  A 
NATION  OF  A  HUNDREPI  MILLIONS  UF  FREEMEN,  OTRETCHINO  FROM  THF 
ATLANTIC  TO  TIIK  PACIFIC,  LIVINO  UNDER  THE  LAWS  OF  ALFRED,  AND 
HPEAKINO  THE  LANGUAGE  OF  SIIAKSPEARE  AND  MILTON,  IS  AN  AUGUS'I 
CONCEPTION.''  ColuridjB'B  TuWe  Talk. 


THIRD  Edition. 

UEVISED,    OORBECTED,    AND   GNLABQID. 


NEW-YORK: 

r».  APPLRTON  &  CO.,  200  BROADWAY. 

PHILADELPHIA: 
GKOHr.E    a     APIM.ETON,    148    0  H  KSN  U  T  -  STR  E  E  T 

1845. 


•f.  ^-^  '. 


o  * 


:  -i 


Dinterpil  ncrording  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  yeni  184.'i, 

Ify    KollUKT  GllEKNIlOW, 

in  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  District  of  Columbia. 


,^A 


'^     1 ',-  ■ 


't'  -■'  '*■    >  .-1   \'-- 


TO 


MY  VENERABLE  AND  EVER  KIND  FRIEND, 


MAJOR-GENERAL   MORGAN    LEWIS, 


LATK   GOVEBNOR  OF    THE   STATE   OF  NEW  YORK 


THIS   VOLUME  IS  INSCRIBED, 


AS  A   MARK  OP  RBSPECT  AND  GRATEFUL  RKMEMBRANOB. 


ROBERT  GREENHOW. 


PREFACE. 


The  following  pages  are  devoted,  principally,  to  the  de- 
scription and  history  of  the  portion  of  North  America  bor- 
dering on  the  Pacific  Ocean,  between  the  40th  and  the  54th 
parallels  of  latitude,  which  is  traversed  and  in  a  great  meas- 
ure drained,  by  the  River  Columbia,  and  to  which  the  name 
of  OREGON  is  now  usually  applied.  It  has,  however,  been 
found  necessary,  for  the  objects  of  the  work,  to  bestow 
almost  equal  attention  on  the  regions  embraced  under  the 
general  appellation  of  California,  extending  southward 
from  the  Columbia  countries,  to  the  arm  of  the  Pacific, 
called  the  Californian  Gulf ;  and  also  to  take  into  consid- 
eration the  coasts  and  islands  north  and  north-west  of  those 
countries,  as  far  as  the  Arctic  Sea. 

The  vast  division  of  America,  comprehending  these  ter- 
ritories, remains,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  isolated  spots 
on  the  coasts  and  on  the  margins  of  the  larger  streams, 
uncultivated  and  inhabited  only  by  tribes  of  wandering  sav- 
ages. Its  shores  and  some  of  its  rivers  have  been  examined 
with  care,  and  their  course  may  be  found  delineated  with 
considerable  minuteness  on  maps.  Of  its  interior  regions, 
some  have  never  been  explored,  and  are  indeed  apparently 
impenetrable  by  man ;  others,  which  ofier  fewer  obstacles 
to  the  traveller,  are  only  known  through  the  vague  and  im- 
perfect accounts  of  traders  or  missionaries ;  and  in  those 
which  have  been  the  most  frequented  by  civilized  persons, 
much  remains  to  be  effected  by  the  aid  of  scientific  obser- 
vations, in  order  to  obtain  satisfactory  ideas  of  their  geog- 
raphy and  physical  characteristics. 


IV 


i'Ukfack. 


ThoHo  torritoriofi,  iinoccupiod,  pnrtinlly  explored,  and  re- 
mote froin  till  civili/od  countrioH,  iiovortholeHH  preHent  much 
that  iH  iiitereHtin^  in  their  political  hiHtory,  uh  well  as  in 
their  natural  cfmlbrination  and  productiouH  ;  and  events  are 
now  in  pro^reHH  which  Koem  calculated,  ere  long,  to  attract 
towardH  them  the  viewH  of  the  governments  and  people  of 
many  powerful  nations.  v 

Every  part  of  this  divi«)ion  of  America  is  in  fact  claimed 
by  some  civilized  state  as  h  exclunive  property,  in  virtue 
either  of  discoveries  or  settlements  made  by  its  citizens  or 
subjects,  or  of  transfer  or  inheritance  from  some  other  state 
claimiuju;  on  similar  /[grounds,  or  of  contiguity  to  its  own  ac- 
knowledged territories.  On  these  points,  the  principles  of 
national  law  are  by  no  means  clearly  defined ;  nor  is  it  easy 
to  apply  such  as  are  most  generally  admitted,  to  particular 
cases ;  nor  are  governments  ordinarily  found  ready  to  relin- 
quisii  claims  merely  because  they  prove  to  be  unfounded, 
agreeably  to  such  principles  :  and  disputes  have  in  conse- 
quence arisen  between  different  nations  asserting  the  right  of 
possession  to  the  same  portion  of  Western  America,  which 
have  more  than  once  threatened  to  disturb  the  peace  of  the 
world.  Attempts  have  been  nmdo  to  settle  the  questions  at 
issue  by  negotiation ;  and  certain  lines  of  boundary  have 
been  agreed  on  by  treaties  between  one  and  another  of  the 
claimant  powers :  but  the  arrangements  thus  made,  can 
scarcely  in  any  instance  be  considered  definitive,  as  they 
have  not  received,  and  will  probably  never  receive,  the  as- 
sent of  the  other  parties  interested. 

In  the  mean  time  these  territories  are  daily  becoming 
more  important  from  the  advancement  of  the  population 
of  adjoining  countries  towards  them,  and  from  the  con- 
stant increase  of  the  trade  and  navigation  of  several  of  the 
claimant  powers  in  the  Pacific,  which  would  render  the  un- 
disputed possession  of  establishments  on  the  coasts  of  that 
Ocean  most  desirable  for  each.  The  difficulty  of  effecting 
an  amicable  partition  of  the  territories  thus  becomes  daily 


PRKFACi:,  ,•  f 

grontcr,  and  more  urgent  therefore  in  the  necessity  of  en- 
denvoring  to  attain  that  end  without  delay. 

It  was  principally  witl.  the  object  of  showing  the  nature, 
origin,  and  ext'  nt  of  tiiese  various  claims,  that  the  author 
of  the  following  pages  composed  his  ''Memoir,  Historical 
ond  Political,  on  the  North-West  Coasts  of  North  America 
and  the  adjacent  Territories,"*  which  was  published  by 
order  of  the  Senate  of  the  United  States  in  1 H40.     He  there 
endeavored  to  present  a  complete,  clear  and  impartial  view 
of  all  the  discoveries  and  settlements,  made  or  attempted, 
in  those  countries  by  civilized  nations,  and  of  all  the  dis- 
putes, negotiations  and  conventions,  between  different  gov- 
ernments with  respect  to  them,  from  the  period  when  they 
were  first  visited  by  Europeans ;  founding  his  statements, 
as  much  as  possible,  upon  original  authorities.     That  Me- 
moir is  the  only  work  hitherto  published,  approaching  in  its 
character  to  a  history  of  the  tvestcrn  portion  of  North 
America.     The  History  of  Cahfornia,t  printed  at  Madrid, 
in  1758,  is  devoted  almost  exclusively  to  descriptions  of  the 
Californian  Peninsula,  and  to  accounts  of  the  missionary 
labors  of  the  Jesuits,  in  that  desolate  region.     The  Intro- 
duction to  the  Journal  of  Marchand's  Voyage,t  which  ap- 
peared in  1799,  and  the  Introduction  to  the  Journal  of 
Galiano  and  Valdes,^  published  in  1802,  are  confined  to 
the  discoveries  of  European  navigators  on  the  North  Pacific 
coasts  of  America,  before  1793;  upon  which  so  many  de- 
tails have  been  made  known,  since  the  appearance  of  those 
works,  that  they  are  now  entirely  obsolete,  and  scarcely  one 
of  their  paragraphs  can  be  cited  as  correct.     The  Journals 
of  Cook,  La  P^rouse,  Vancouver,  Mackenzie,  Krusenstern, 


•  Extract  from  the  Journal  of  the  Ser>ntoof  the  United  States.  —  "  Monday,  Feb. 
10,  1840.  On  motion,  by  Mr.  Linn  — Ordered,  That  a  History  of  the  North- West 
Coast  of  North  America  and  the  adjacent  Territories,  communicated  to  the  Select 
Committee  on  the  Oregon  Territory,  be  printed,  with  the  accompanying  map :  and 
two  thousand  Ave  liundred  copies,  in  addition  to  tlio  usual  number,  be  printed  for 
the  use  of  the  Senate."  , 


t  See  page  103. 
B 


X  See  page  223. 


§  See  page  241. 


vi 


PREFACE. 


Lewis  and  Clarke,  Kotzebue,  Beechey,  and  Belcher,  all 
contain  important  information  as  to  the  geography  of  the 
countries  under  consideration ;  but  as  regards  the  events, 
which  lie  within  the  province  of  the  historian,  we  have  only 
the  accounts  of  the  Astoria  enterprise,  by  Franch^re,  Cox, 
JEind  Irving,  all  interesting,  yet  all  limited  to  the  occur- 
rences*of  three  or  four  years.  In  the  most  popular  histo- 
ries of  other  countries,  and  especially  of  Great  I3ritain,  the 
circumstances  relating  to  North-West  America,  are,  in 
every  material  point,  misrepresented,  either  from  neglect 
on  the  part  of  the  authors,  or  from  motives  less  excusable ; 
and  these  histories,  being  universally  read  and  received  as 
true  in  England  and  in  the  United  States,  it  is  not  astonish- 
ing, that  erroneous  ideas  should  be  generally  entertained 
by  the  people  of  both  nations,  upon  points,  which  have 
bf^en,  and  will  continue  to  be,  the  subjects  of  discussion  be- 
tween their  governments. 

The  Memoir,  above  mentioned,  contains  the  outlines  of 
the  History  now  presented ;  for  which  the  same  authorities, 
with  many  others  since  collected,  consisting  of  private  and 
official  reports,  letters  and  accounts,  journals  of  expeditions 
by  sea  and  land,  and  histories  and  state  papers  of  various 
civilized  nations,  have  been  carefully  examined  and  com- 
pared. Many  errors  of  fact  as  well  as  of  reasoning  in  the 
former  work,  have  by  this  means  been  corrected;  and 
new  circumstances  have  been  brought  to  light,  and  new 
arguments  have  been  founded  upon  them,  calculated  per- 
haps materially  to  modify  the  views  of  those  to  whom  the 
settlement  of  questions  relative  to  North-West  America 
may  be  hereafter  entrusted.  The  principal  object  of  the 
author  has  been  to  present  the  facts  relative  to  the  discov- 
ery and  settlement  of  those  countries,  fairly ;  and  to  investi- 
gate the  claims  which  have  been  deduced  from  them, 
agreeably  to  the  immutable  principles  of  right,  and  the 
general  understanding  of  civilized  nations :  and  although 
he  fully  appreciates,  and  endeavors  in  all  cases  to  place  in 


PREFACE. 


# 


their  proper  light,  the  merits  of  his  own  countrymen,  and 
the  pretensions  of  his  own  government,  he  is  not  conscious 
that  his  desire  to  do  so,  has  in  any  case  led  him  to  the 
commission  of  injustice  towards  other  individuals,  or  na- 
tions, either  by  misstatements,  or  by  suppressions  of  the 
truth.  In  order  to  unite  the  various  parts  into  a  regular 
narrative,  and  to  preserve  the  remembrances  of  events 
which  may  be  interesting,  if  not  important  at  future  peri- 
ods, he  has  introduced  circumstances  not  immediately  tend- 
ing to  the  attainment  of  the  principal  objects  proposed ;  but 
he  has  omitted  nothing  voluntarily,  which  if  made  known 
might  have  led  to  conclusions  different  from  those  here 
presented.  Dates  and  references  to  authorities  are  gener- 
ally given,  and  always  in  cases  where  the  circumstances 
related  are  new  or  material,  or  in  which  his  accounts  differ 
from  those  usually  received ;  and  he  has  appended  a  num- 
ber of  documents,  extracts  and  original  notices  as  Proofs 
and  Illustrations  of  the  history.  Among  the  latter,  are 
some  valuable  papers  never  before  published,  others  not 
commonly  known,  and  others  again  which  the  reader  will 
probably  desire  frequently  to  consult,  including  all  the  trea- 
ties and  conventions  hitherto  concluded  between  civilized 
nations,  with  respect  to  the  countries  forming  the  subjects 
of  the  history. 

In  the  geographical  view  he  has  collected,  compared, 
and  endeavored  to  arrange  in  order,  what  appeared  to  be 
the  most  exact  and  striking  details,  presented  by  the  nu- 
merous travellers  who  have  visited  the  countries  in  ques- 
tion. The  map  has  been  composed,  as  far  as  possible, 
from  original  authorities ;  being  intended  for  the  illustration 
of  the  history,  it  necessarily  embraces  a  very  large  portion 
of  the  surface  of  the  globe,  and  will  be  found,  perhaps,  on 
the  whole,  more  nearly  correct  than  any  other  yet  offered 
to  the  public. 

Washington,  Februarv,  1844. 


1 1 ; 


PREFACE  TO  THE  SECOND  EDITION. 


•       / 


Circumstances  which  it  is  unnecessary  here  to  mention, 
prevented  the  pubHcation  of  the  first  edition  of  the  work  in 
the  United  States  for  more  than  a  year,  though  it  was  issued 
in  London,  by  Mr.  John  Murray,  in  June,  1844.  Con- 
gress having  by  a  recent  Act  most  Uberally  ordered  the 
purchase  of  fifteen  hundred  copies  for  the  use  of  the  gen- 
eral government,  and  for  distribution  among  the  States  and 
in  foreign  countries,  it  has  been  necessary  to  print  the  new 
edition  now  offered  ;  in  which  errors  have  been  corrected, 
many  portions,  including  the  whole  of  the  Geography,  and 
nearly  the  whole  last  chapter  of  the  History,  have  been  writ- 
ten anew,  and  an  important  document  has  been  added  to 
the  Proofs  and  Illustrations. 

The  first  edition,  thus  published  in  Europe,  has  not  re- 
mained unnoticed :  it  has  been  reviewed  generally  with  ex- 
treme severity  of  language,  and  with  corresponding  looseness 
of  criticism,  in  London  journals,  and  has  afforded  large 
materials  for  another  work  on  the  same  subject,  published 
in  Paris,  under  the  auspices  of  the  French  government. 
The  author,  however,  observes  with  pleasure,  that  in  all, 
even  the  best  of  these  articles,  the  reviewers  carefully  ab- 
stain from  the  most  important  points  touched  in  his  work  ; 
while  all  his  admissions  are  cited  as  definitive.  On  the 
accounts  and  views  here  presented  of  Drake's  Visit  to  the 
North- West  Coast,  of  the  pretended  British  Settlement  at 
Nootka,  of  the  discovery  and  survey  of  the  Columbia  river, 
of  the  character  and  duration  of  the  Nootka  Convention,  of 
the  alleged  reservation  on  the  part  of  the  British  govern- 


PREFACE. 


U 


■'    ■   ■  :^;^ 


ment  with  regard  to  the  restoration  of  Astoria — on  these 
and  other  points,  the  London  reviewers  are  silent,  or  care- 
fully omit  to  notice  the  principal  arguments  adduced  by  the 
author.  The  same  observations  apply  to  the  answer  writ- 
ten by  Adam  Thom,  Recorder  of  Rupert's  Land,  to  the 
Memoir  on  the  North-West  Coast  above  mentioned,  which 
was  published  at  London,  in  1843,  by  direction  of  the  Hud- 
son's Bay  Company,  and  has  been  liberally  distributed  by 
its  officers.  The  author,  however,  takes  great  pleasure  in 
excepting  the  article  on  the  same  Memoir,  in  the  British 
and  Foreign  Review,  for  January,  1344 ;  which,  though  not 
less  decided  in  its  opposition  to  his  views  on  the  subject 
than  the  others,  and  far  more  able  in  every  respect,  is  as 
remarkable  for  its  fairness  as  for  the  courteous  and  concili- 
atory language  employed.  With  regard  to  the  contradiction 
in  the  Quarterly  Review,  (Sept.,  1844,  article  on  the  Life 
of  Lord  Malmesbury,)  of-  the  account  in  page  1 1 1  of  this 
history,  of  the  engagement  believed  to  have  been  made  by 
the  British  government,  in  1771,  to  withdraw  its  subjects 
from  the  Falkland  Islands,  the  reader  is  simply  referred  to 
that  page  as  amended,  and  to  the  authorities  there  cited. 

The  Memoir  "  on  the  Discovery  of  the  Mississippi,  and 
on  the  South-western,  Oregon  and  North-western  bounda- 
ries of  the  United  States,  by  Thomas  Falconer,"  pub- 
lished at  London,  in  October,  1844,  contains  many  stric- 
tures on  the  present  history,  the  justice  of  which  the  author 
denies  in  toto ;  and  he  will,  in  defence,  merely  recommend 
to  Mr.  Falconer,  the  observance  in  future,  of  a  few  simple 
rules  of  historical  composition,  from  which  he  has  himself 
never  deviated,  and  the  propriety  of  which,  he  doubts  not, 
will  be  immediately  admitted.  The  first  is  —  never  to  cite 
authorities  at  second  hand,  but  always  to  examine  the  origi- 
nal book,  document  or  map  cited.  Had  Mr.  Falconer,  for 
instance,  examined  the  treaty  of  1803,  by  which  France 
ceded  Louisiana  to  the  United  States,  he  would  not  have 
found  in  it  the  passage  describing  the  limits  of  Louisiana, 


m 


Z  PREFACE. 

which  he  has  quoted  (page  37,)  as  an  important  passage  of 
that  treaty  from  Bradford's  History  of  the  Federal  Govern- 
ment ;  nor  would  he  have  reprehended  the  author  of  this 
history,  for  faiUng  to  notice  that  passage,  nor  would  he 
have  founded  upon  its  supposed  stipulations,  many  pages 
of  argument  very  logically  drawn,  but  unfortunately  vain, 
to  prove  the  premeditated  bad  faith  of  the  American  gov- 
ernment.    Had  he  in  like  manner  examined  the  collection 
of  documents  presented  by  the  English  and  French  com- 
missaries, appointed  under  the  Treaty  of  Aix  la  Chapelle, 
in  1748,  to  settle  certain  disputed  questions  of  boundary  in 
America,  he  would  not  have  mistaken  those  commissaries, 
as  he  has,  for  the  plenipotentiaries  who  signed  the  Treaty 
of  Paris,  in  1763 ;  nor  would  he,  on  the  faith  of  the  inex- 
plicable assertions  of  M.  Duflot  de  Mofras,  have  triumph- 
antly cited  the  map  of  Northern  America,  in  the  fourth 
volume  of  that  Collection,  as  proving  that  Canada  formerly 
extended  to  the  Pacific,  and  that  the  Columbia  river  was  dis- 
covered by  French  officers  and  traders,  early  in  the  last  cen- 
tury.   (See  note  at  page  159  of  this  volume.)    He  should, 
also,  in  justice  to  those  whose  arguments  he  opposes,  quote 
their  expressions  correctly ;  that  is,  quote  their  words,  and  not 
omit  important  passages,  which  are  indispensable  to  show 
their  true  meaning,  as  he  has  done,  (in  his  pages  65  to  68,) 
with  regard  to  the  views  of  the  rights  derived  from  discovery 
and  occupation,  presented  in  pages  187  et  seq.  of  this  his- 
tory.   Lastly,  he  should  not  attempt  to  controvert  precise 
statements,  expressed  in  exact  terms,  by  vague  and  general 
assertions.     Thus  had  he  succeeded  in  proving  that  Can- 
ada extended  to  the  Pacific  —  which  he  has  most  signally 
failed  to  do  —  he  would  still  have  been  very  far  from  re- 
deeming the  pledge  given  in  his  page  85,  "  to  demonstrate . 
most  distinctly,  that  there  is  not  the  slightest  foundation," 
for  the  statement  in  page  276  of  this  history,  (misquoted 
by  him,)  that  at  the  beginning  of  the  present  century, 
"  Louisiana  stretched  northward  and  north-westward  to  an 


PREFACE. 


m\ 


undefined  extent."  The  word  undefined  was  there  used  to 
show  that  the  boundaries  of  Louisiana,  in  those  directions, 
had  not  b*!en,  as  on  the  east,  definitely  settled  by  accord  of 
the  parties  interested ;  and  this  simple  statement  cannot  be 
impugned,  by  the  assertion  that  Louisiana  was  then  bounded 
on  the  north  by  Canada,  or  the  Hudson's  Bay  territories,  the 
limits  of  which  were  equally  undetermined. 

Mr.  Falconer  has  displayed  very  little  fairness,  in  his 
remarks  on  the  part  of  this  history,  relating  to  the  discovery 
of  the  Columbia,  in  which  he  omits  all  notice  of  the  prin- 
cipal arguments  in  favor  of  the  Americans,  and  against  the 
assertions  of  Vancouver  and  Broughton.  With  regard 
to  the  bitterness  which  the  author  is  said  to  evince  to- 
wards Vancouver,  he  confesses,  that  as  an  American,  he 
felt  deeply,  but  more  in  sorrow  than  in  anger,  the  insults 
heaped  upon  his  fellow-citizens,  in  the  journal  of  that  dis- 
tinguished navigator :  he  has,  however,  in  no  instance  ex- 
pressed those  feelings,  without  showing  the  circumstances 
which  gave  rise  to  them ;  and  he  has  produced  distinct 
charges  of  invidiousness  and  want  of  good  faith,  on  the 
part  of  Vancouv3r,  drawn  entirely  from  his  Journal,  which 
it  will  not  be  easy  to  controvert.  It  may  be  observed, 
however,  that  Mr.  Falconer  rather  apologizes  for  his  coun- 
tryman than  defends  him  ;  and  that  he  does  not  seem  dis- 
posed to  admit,  that  Gray  never  saw  the  Columbia  or  was 
within  five  leagues  of  its  entrance.  .   ..  i-'ai:../ 

With  regard  to  the  "  Exploration  of  the  territories  of  Ore- 
gon, CaUfornia,  &c.  by  M.  Duflot  de  Mofras,"  pubhshed  re- 
cently at  Paris,  by  order  of  the  king,  and  under  the  auspices  of 
Marshal  Soult  and  M.  Guizot,  the  author  conceives  himself 
warranted  in  asserting,  that  although  it  professes  to  be  the 
result  of  long  and  minute  observations,  during  a  mission  in 
those  countries,  and  of  subsequent  profound  researches  and 
studies,  yet  the  greater  portion  of  the  work  is  extracted 
from  the  present  History  and  the  preceding  Memoir  on  the 
same  subject,  and  it  contains  scarcely  anything  which  might 


xu 


PREFACE. 


not  have  been  produced  by  one  who  had  never  quitted  the 
barriers  of  Paris.  The  errors  and  misstatements  of  M.  de 
Mofras  are  indeed  innumerable,  particularly  in  all  that  re- 
lates to  the  United  States,  towards  which  he  appears  to 
entertain  feelings  of  aversion  even  stronger  than  towards 
Great  Britain.  To  their  discredit,  history  and  statistics  are 
made  equally  subservient ;  and  from  the  facts  as  thus  pre- 
sented, always  with  extreme  minuteness  and  precision  of 
detail,  conclusions  are  drawn,  which  have  at  least  the  merit 
of  novelty.  Thus  while  pathetically  lamenting  the  entire 
disorganization  of  a//  the  American  Republics,  he  finds  con- 
solation in  the  fact,  that  they  all  exhibit  a  general  return  to 
monarchical  predilections,  even  the  United  States,  "  where 
the  tendencies  of  the  loyalist  party  (?)  are  well  known.''''  He 
resigns  the  hope  that  France  will  recover  her  former  domin- 
ions on  this  continent,  but  he  is  assured  that  "  the  Cana- 
dians are  at  this  day  as  French  as  in  the  times  of  the 
Duquesnes  and  Beauharnais ; "  and  he  confidently  pro- 
nounces, that  whensoever  they  may  throw  off  the  detested 
yoke  of  Britain,  a  Franco-Canadian  empire  will  be  formed, 
extending  from  the  Saint  Lawrence  to  the  Pacific,  and  in- 
cluding all  the  British  possessions  and  Oregon,  which  will 
be  bound  to  France  by  every  tie,  and  will  afford  the  most 
important  aid  for  the  expansion  of  her  establishments  in  the 
Pacific.  This  songe  diplomatique  seems  to  have  affected 
the  imagination  of  M.  de  Mofras  most  strongly,  and  traces 
of  its  influence  are  to  be  found  in  every  part  of  his  work  ; 
of  his  care  in  citing  authorities,  and  his  ingenuity  in  draw- 
ing deductions  suitable  to  these  views,  remarkable  instances 
will  be  found  in  the  note  on  page  159  of  this  volume. 

With  these  preliminary  remarks  and  explanations,  the 
author  presents  his  book  to  the  public,  trusting  that  it  may 
prove  useful,  in  placing  the  difficult  questions  on  which  it 
treats,  in  a  clearer  light,  and  may  thus  contribute  to  their 
just  and  peaceful  determination. 

Washington,  March,  1845. 


1 1 


TABLE    OF   CONTENTS. 


GEOGRAPHY   OF   THE  WESTERN   SECTION   OP   NORTH 

AMERICA. 

GENERAL    VIEW. 

Great  Natural  DiviRions  or  N.  America.  3 — Coaata  on  the  Pacific  and  the  Arctic  Seaa, 
4  —  Mountain  Chaina  of  the  Pacific  Section — Far-West  Mountain!,  6  —  Rocky  Moun- 
tains—Blue  Mountains,  6  — Climate  of  the  Pacific  Section  —  Lakea.  7  — Rivera,  8  — 
Central  Regiona  of  JN.  America — Animals  and  Veeetahlea  of  the  Pacific  Section  — Na- 
tives, 9  ^l^tabliahmenta  of  civilized  Nations,  10— Political  Limits,  11. 


CALIFORNIA. 

Extent  and  Divisiona- Gulf  of  California,  12 — Pearl  Fish'sry  —  Sonora  and  Sinaloa,  13— 
Peninaulaof  California— Its  Climate,  Soil,  Productions,  and  Animals,  14- Aborigines  — 
Ports  and  Mexican  Settlements,  15— Continental  or  New  California  —  Ita  Extent,  Soil, 
Climate,  16  — Porta  and  Mexican  Settlements^  San  Diego,  Santa  Barbara— Monterey, 
17  —  San  Franciaco  — River  Sacramento,  18— Bodega —Cape  Mendocino,  19  — Interior 
Regiona  —  River  Colorado—  Utah  Lake,  20. 


OREGON. 

Natural  and  aaanmed  Boundaries,  21- Strait  of  Fuca,  22- Columbia  River— North 
Branch,  23  —  South  Branch  -  -  Main  Trunk,  24  —  Far- West  Mountains,  25  —Westernmost 
Region  of  Oregon,  26  —  Blue  Mountains  ^Middle  Repon  — ■  Elaatemmoat  or  Rocky 
Mountain  Resion,  27— New  Caledonia,  28— North- West  Archipelago,  29— Aborigines, 
30— i  Hudaon^  Bay  Company's  Establishments,  31  —  American  Settlements,  33. 


RUSSIAN    AMERICA. 


Extent  and  Limits — Russian  American  Company,  36  — District  of  Sitka— Sitka  or  New 
Archangel  —  District  of  Kodiak,  37- Cook'a  Inlet— Prince  William'a  Sound— Mount 
St.  Elias — Aliaska — Aleutian  Islands  —  Michaelof  Diatrict,  38  — Kamtcha&a— Kurile 
Islands,  39. 


Sandwich  lalands,  39— Maroueaas  Islands— Society  Islands,  40— ^ Projects  for   Canala 
uniting  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  Oceans,  41. 


xiy 


COMTBNTS. 


HISTORY  OF  OREGON  AND  CALIFORNIA,  ETC. 


u 


CHAPTER  1. 
TO  1543. 


Preliminanr  ObMrratioiu,  45— Effort!  of  the  Spaniard!  to  diicover  Weitem  FaiMgM  to 
India— SucceHive  Diicoreriet  of  the  Weit  Indiei,  tiie  North  American  Continent,  the 
Eaatem  Paaaage  to  India,  Braiil,  and  the  Pacific  Ocean,  46  —  Search  for  a  navigable  Paa- 
■age  connecting  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific  Oceana— Suppoaed  Discovery  of  auoh  a  Paa- 
aage, called  thi>  Strait  of  Anion,  47 — Discovery  of  Magellan's  Strait  and  the  Western 
Passage  to  India,  48  —  Conquest  of  Mexico  by  Cortis,  who  endeavors  to  discover  new 
countries  fluther  north-west,  fiO^  Voyages  of  Moldonado,  Hurtado  de  Mendoxa,  Grijalva, 
and  Becerra,  64- Discovery  of  Califoraia  —  Expedition  of  Cortes  to  California,  65  —  Pre- 
tended Discoveries  of  Knar  Marcos  de  Miza,  69— Voyages  of  Ulloa,  Alarcon,  and  Cabrillo, 
60— Expeditions  of  Coronado  and  Soto,  61— The  Spaniards  desist  iVom  their  Efforts  to 
explore  the  Morth-West  Coasts  of  America,  6A. 


CHAPTER    11.  -    ' 

•  1543  TO  1608, 

The  Spaniards  conquer  the  Philippine  Islands,  and  establish  a  direct  Trade  across  the  Pacific, 
between  Asia  and  America,  66 — Measures  of  the  Spanish  Government  to  prevent  other 
European  Nations  from  settling  or  trading  in  America,  68 — These  Measures  resisted  by 
the  Eddish,  the  French,  and  the  Dutch — Free  Traders  and  Freebooters  infest  the  West 
Indies,^- First  Voyvges  of  the  English  in  the  Pacific,  72— Voyages  of  Drake  and  Car- 
emliahf'TS- Endeavors  of  the  English  to  discover  a  North- West  Passage  flrom  the  Atlan- 
tic to  ue  Pacific,  77— False  Reports  of  the  Discovery  of  such  Passages,  78 — Supposed 
Voyages  of  Urdaneta,  Maldonado,  and  Font6, 79 — Voyage  of  Juan  de  Fuca,  86  — Expedi- 
tions of  Sebaatian  ViscainOi  90— Supposed  Discove^  of  a  great  River  in  North- West 
America,  93.  ^     .  - 

CHAPTER    III. 

1608  TO  1768. 

The  North- West  Coasts  of  North  America  remain  nearly  neglected  during  the  whole  of  thia 
Period,  96  •-  Efforts  of  the  Enslish  and  the  Dutch  to  find  new  Passagea  into  the  Pacific  — 
Discovery  of  Hudson's  Bay  ana  Baffin's  Bay,  97— Discovery  of  the  Passage  around  Capo 
Horn  —  Establishment  of  the  Hudson's  BayTrading  Company— Endeavors  of  the  Span- 
iards to  settle  California  unsuccessful,  98  — .  The  Jesuits  undertake  the  Reduction  of  Cal- 
ifornia, 99  — '  Establishments  of  the  Jesuits  in  the  Peninsula,  100,  and  their  Expulsion  iW>m 
the  Spanish  Dominions,  106. 


CHAPTER    IV. 
1769  TO  1779. 


First  Establishments  on  the  West  Coast  of  California  founded  by  the  Spaniards,  108 —Dis- 
pute betweei)  Spain  aqd  Great  Britain  respecting  the  Falkland  Islands,  111  ^Exploring 
V<fyag6s'of  the  Spaniards  under  Perez,  114.  Heceta  and  Bodega,  117,  and  Arteaga  and  Bo- 
dega, 125— Discovery  of  Nootka  Sound,  Norfolk  Sound,  and  the  Mouth  of  the  Columbia 
River,  190— Importance  of  these  Discoveries,  124. 


CONTENTS* 


If 


CHAPTER    V. 


1711  TO  1T79. 


Diicoreriei  or  the  Runioiu  flrom  Kamtchatka — Voyagei  oT  Bering  and  Tchirikor  to  the 
Arctic  Sea  and  to  the  American  Continent,  U9 —  Eitabliihrnenta  of  the  Runian  Fur  Tra- 
der! in  the  Aleutian  Itlandi,  13S  —  Vovaffet  of  Synd,  Kronitzin,  and  Levaihef,  137  —  First 
Voyage  from  Kamtchatka  to  China,  mnde  by  Poliih  Exiles  under  Benyowikv,  138  —  General 
Inaccuracy  of  the  Ideas  of  the  Russians  respecting  the  Geography  of  the  northernmost 
ComU  of  the  Pacific,  before  177<J,  139. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

1763  TO  1780. 

Great  Britain  obtains  Possession  of  Canada,  140 — Journey  of  Carver  to  the  Upper  Missis- 
sippi, 141  — First  Mention  of  the  Oregon  River,  142  —  Inaccuracy  of  Carver's  Statements. 
144 — Journeys  of  Heame  through  the  Regions  wost  of  Hudson's  Ba^,  145— Voyage  of 
Captain  Cook  to  the  North  Pacific,  147 —  His  important  Discoveries  m  that  Quarter,  and 
Death,  167 — Return  of  his  Ships  to  Europe;  Occurrences  at  Canton  during  their  Stay  in 
that  Port,  168. 


CHAPTER    VII. 

1780  TO  1789. 

Commercial  Results  of  Cook's  Discoveries.  160 —  Settlements  of  the  Russians  in  America, 
161  — Scheme  of  Ledyard  for  the  Trade  of  the  North  Pacific,  162 — Voyage  of  La  P^rouse, 
163— Direct  Trade  between  the  American  Coasts  and  Canton  commenced,  166— Voyages 
of  the  Enslish  Fur  Traders  —  Re-discovery  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  171  —  Voyage  of 
Meares,  who  endeavors  to  find  a  great  River  described  by  the  Spaniards,  175  —  First 
Voyages  from  the  United  States  to  the  South  Pacific,  and  to  Canton,  179 — Voyage  of  the 
Columbia  and  Washington,  under  Kendrick  and  Gray,  from  Boston  to  the  North  Pa- 
cific, 180. 

CHAPTER    VIII. 

1788  AHD  1789. 

Uneasiness  of  the  Spanish  Government  at  the  Proceedings  of  the  Fur  Traders  in  the  North 
Pacific,  183 — Voyages  of  Observation  by  Martinez  and  Hiro  to  the  Russian  American 
Settlements,  185  —  Remonstrances  of  the  Court  of  Madrid  to  that  of  St.  Petersburg, 
against  the  alleged  Encroachments  of  the  latter  Power,  186 — Martinez  and  Haro  sent  bv  the 
Viceroy  of  Mexico  to  take  Possession  of  Nootkri  j.iund,  187 — Claims  of  Spain  examined, 
188  —  Seizure  of  British  and  other  Vessels  at  liootkaby  Martinet,  191  —  Captain  Gray, 
in  the  Washington,  explores  the  East  Coast  of  Queen  Charlotte's  Island,  and  enters  the 
Strait  of  Fuca,  199— •Kendrick,  in  the  Washington,  passes  through  the  Strait  of  Fuca— 
Return  of  the  Columbia  to  the  United  States,  200.  , 


CHAPTER    IX, 


1790. 


Controversy  between  Great  Britain  and  Spain  respecting  the  North-West  Coasts  of  America 
and  the  Navicntion  of  the  Pacific,  202 — The  Owners  of  the  Vessels  seized  at  Nootka 
apply  for  Redress  to  the  British  Government,  which  demands  Satisfaction  for  the  alleged 
Outrages,  203  — Spain  resists  the  Demand,  and  calls  on  France  for  Aid,  agreeably  to  the 


XVI 


CONTENTS. 


Fnmily  Compact,  207  —  Proceodinf^  in  thn  National  Aiaombly  of  Franca  on  the  Subjnct, 
SOH  —  Spain  cnaa^ei  to  inHoinnit'y  tliR  Kritisti  for  the  I'roportjr  Hciznd,  21)5  —  Kiirthnr  \)c- 
DiitndiofUreat  Britain— UuNiKiiH of  l'ittitgiiiiii4tSp:iniili  Ainuruja,  'JUG —> Secret  Mvdiatiun 
of  France,  through  which  the  Diiipiito  in  lettlcd,  201)  —  Convention  or  October,  I71K), 
called  the  Nootka  Trtaty,  21U — PrucvodingH  in  Fariianiont,  and  Kollectiona  on  thia  Con- 
vention. 211. 


J 


CHAPTER    X 


175)0  TO  1792. 


Vancouver  aent  by  the  Britiiih  Government  to  explore  the  Cooata  of  America,  and  receive 
Poaaeaaion  of  Lands  and  Huildingti  agruenldv  to  tlio  Convention  witli  Spain,  2IG  —  I'osango 
of  the  Washington,  under  Kendrick,  through  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  in  178!),  218  —  Nootjia  re- 
nccupied  by  the  Spaniarda,220  — Voyagoti  of  Fidalso,  Qnimper,  Kliaa,  Billings,  Marchaiid, 
nnd  MnloHpina.  221  —  Voyagea  of  the  Ainorinoii  I'ur  Traders,  (iroy,  liigrahani,  and  Ken- 
drick, 2ifi  —  Discovery  ol  the  Washington  Islands  by  Ingraham,  22b, 


CHAPTER    XI. 

1792  TO  1796. 

Vancouver  and  Broughton  arrive  on  the  American  (^oaata  in  1792.  and  meet  with  Gray,  who 
iiiforma  them  of  his  Uiscoverv  of  the  Columbia  River,  233— Tne  Strait  of  Fuca  surveyed 
by  Vancouver,  Galiano,  and  Valdes,  238  —  Nngotiations  between  Vancouver  and  Quadra 
at  Nootka,  2^13  —  Vancouver's  InjuDticc  to  the  Americans,  214,  24)),2.')()  —  Broughton 's  F.x- 
amination  of  the  Lower  Piurt  of  the  Columbia  River,21.7  —  Vancouver's  Proceedings  at  tlie 
Sandwich  Islands,  2'I9'— Ho  completes  the  Survey  of  the  North- West  Coasts  of  America, 
and  returns  to  England,  2d5  —  Tho  Spaniards  abandon  Nootka,  237  —  (/(inclusions  with 
Regard  to  the  Dispute  between  Great  Britain  and  Spain,  and  the  Couventiou  of  1790,  268. 


CHAPTER    Xn, 


17S8  TO  1810. 


Establishment  of  the  North- West  Fur  Trading  Company  of  Montreal,  in  1701,201 — Rupcdi- 
tions  of  Mackenzie  to  the  Arctic  Sea  and  to  the  Pacific  C'oast,  2(i3  — Tho  Trade  between 
the  North  Pacific  Coasts  of  America  and  Canton  conducted  almost  exclusively  by  Vessela 
of  the  United  States  from  1706  to  1814,  260  —  F.stablishment  of  the  Russian  American 
Company,  269  —  Its  Settlements  and  Factories  on  the  American  Coasts,  270  —  Expedition 
of  Krusenstern  through  the  North  Pacific,  272 — Proposition  of  the  Russian  Government 
to  that  of  the  United  States,  with  Regard  to  the  Trade  of  the  North  Pacific,  275.  .. 


CHAPTER    XIII 


1803  TO  1806. 


Cession  of  Louisiana  by  France  to  the  United  States,  276  —  Inquiries  as  to  the  true  Extent 
of  Louisiana,  277  —  Lrroneous  Supposition  that  its  Limits  towards  the  North  had  been 
fixed  by  Commissaries  agreeably  to  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht.  281  —  President  Jefferson  sends 
Iiewis  and  Clarke  to  examine  tlie  Missouri  and  Columbia,  284  —  Account  of  their  Expedi- 
tion  from  the  Mississippi  to  the  Pacific,  28d. 


OOITTENTS. 


xvu 


CHAPTER    XIV. 


180G  TO  181&. 


II 


Fint  EatitbliihmenU  of  the  North-West  Conipnny  in  the  Countriee  north  of  the  Columbia, 
mtO—Vacihv  Fur  Comnniiv  I'urined  at  Now  York,  2ir2—l'iui  of  iU  Founder,  2*J3— Fint 
Expedition  from  Now  York  in  the  'I'onquin,  %)A — Foundation  of  Astoria  near  the  Mouth 
of  tlie  Columbia  Kivor,  'ifMi — March  of  the  Party  under  Hunt  and  Cnipka  acruM  the 
(.'ontiiieiit,  "itlHl  — Arrival  of  the  Beaver  in  the  Columbia,  21)9  —  Deitruction  of  the  Ton- 
nuin  by  the  iSavogcx,  SOU— War  botwotm  the  United  Stuto8  and  (jreat  Britain  fktal  to  the 
KiiterpriHO,  301  —  Eitablishmeuta  of  the  Pacilic  Company  lold  to  the  North- Weit  Com- 
pany, JOJ— Astoria  taken  by  the  British,  304— Dissolution  of  the  Pacific  Company,  30&. 


CHAPTER    XV. 


•\<MJJVI 


ltil4  TO  182U. 

Restitution  of  Astoria  to  the  ITnitnd  States  by  Gtvai  Britain,  agreeably  to  the  Treaty  of 
Cjhcnt,  301) — Alle^od  Kcsorvntioii  of  Ki)iht8  on  the  Part  of  Great  Britain,  310— First  Ne- 
ffotiution  between  the  (.iovnnimenta  of  (irunt  Britain  and  the  United  States  respecting  the 
Territories  west  of  the  Koc-ky  Alountninx,  and  1^'onvontion  for  t)ie  joint  Occupancy  of 
tliune  Territories,  3l'l — FIririda  Treaty  between  Spain  and  the  United  States,  dv  whirh 
tlie  Latter  acquires  the  Title  of  Spain  to  the  North- West  Coasts,  316- Colonel  Lonu's 
exploring  Expedition  to  the  Kooky  Mountains.  3Se2— Disputes  between  the  British  Nortli- 
West  and  Hudson's  Bay  Compouies,  324 — Union  of  those  Bodies  — Act  of  Parliament 
extending  the  Jurisdiction  of  tlie  Canada  Courts  to  the  Pacific  Countries,  S:2fi—Kussian 
Establishments  on  the  North  Pacific,  3'27  — Expeditions  in  Search  of  Northern  Passages 
between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific,  3'^U  —  Death  of  Tainaliainaha,  and  Introduction  of 
Christianity  into  tlie  Sandwich  Islands,  'Ji!i).  ^„t 


CHAPTER    XVI, 

1880  TO  1828. 


■>.j.  >^     hjBBi" 


'  Expcdi- 
between 
by  Vessela 
lAmerican 
Jlxpedition 
Ivernment 


Bill  reported  by  a  Committee  of  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United  States,  for  the 
Occupation  of  the  Columbia  River,  331  —  Ukase  of  the  Emperor  of  Russia,  with  Regard  to 
tlie  North  Pacific  Consts,  332  —  Negotiations  between  the  (ioverniiients  of  (ireat  Urituiii, 
Russia,  and  the  United  States,  333  — Conventions  between  the  United  States  and  Russia, 
and  between  Great  Britain  and  Russia,  'M\  —  Further  Negotiations  between  the  United 
States  and  Great  Britain  relative  to  the  North-Went  Coasts,  3'14— Indefinite  Extension  of 
the  Arrangement  for  the  joint  Occiipann}^  of  the  Territories  west  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, by  the  British  and  tiie  Americans,  3d'I. 


.-t' 


CHAPTER    XVIi 


»i  i  ,r  'f'  ).'>  •'■v. 


1883  TO  1843. 


Extent 

|iad  been 

nn  sends 

I  Expedi- 


Few  (Mtizens  of  the  United  States  in  the  Countries  west  of  the  Rockv  Mountains  between 
1H13  and  1U23,  356  — Trading  Kxpeditions  of  Ashley,  Sublette,  Smith,  Pitcher,  Pattie, 
Bonneville,  and  Wyeth,  357 ^Missionaries  from  the  United  States  form  Establishments 
on  the  Columbia,  300 — First  Printing  Press  set  up  in  Oregon,  361  --Opposition  of  the  Hud- 
son's Bay  Company  to  the  Americans ;  how  exerted,  359— •  Controversy  between  the 
United  States  and  Russia,  3C2  — Dispute  between  the  Hudson's  Bay  and  the  Russian 
American  Companies;  how  terminated,  363 •^ (California, . 365— (.'apture  of  Monterey  by 
Commodore  Jones,  3()3  —  The  Sandwich  Istands,  369  —  Prncnedings  of  the  Missionaries, 
370  —  Kxpulsion  of  the  Catholic  Priests,  and  their  Reinstatement  by  a  French  Foioe, 
S7t  —  The  Sandwieh  Islands  temoorarilv  occupied  by  the  British,  374— Exploring  Expe- 
dition of  the  .Vmehcans  under  VVUkes,  375. 


ITlii  CONTENT!. 

CHAPTER    XVIII. 

18411  TO  1845. 

Kioltomant  In  the  United  SUtai  mipaellnf  Oregon,  376  —  BUI  in  (h<  i-ntto  fbr  the  ii 
ditto  Ooeupttlon  of  Oregon,  37D— Thtl  BUI  iiicuniiitent  with  the  Conrention  of  IBI7, 
between  the  United  Stnlvi  nnd  Greet  BriUin,  3bd—Kr newel  of  Negolletioiie  between 
the  United  Htole*  ami  Ureet  Britain— kluiamt'.m*  iVom  the  United  Statae  to  Oregoa, 
891  —  Stote  of  the  lludion'i  Bey  Compiriv'e  FoMeMiooe,  d<J3— Conolutiea. 

S  '- 

PROOFS  AND  ILLUSTRATIONS. 
A. 

Grjoinel  Account  of  the  Voyage  oT  the  Greek  Pilot  Juan  de  Puce  a!  <i,)'  ti,  "'orth-Weit 
Coaate  of  America  in  IWS .    .    .    .    4tf? 

B. 

Fun  and  the  Fur  Trade 411 

a 

Correapottdence  between  the  Spanieh  CoininRndant  at  Nootka  Sound,  rt'I  the  Maatora  of  the 
American  trading  Veiiela  Columbia  anil  Hope,  reauecting  the  Oi  rurrencea  at  that  Place 
in  the  Summer  of  1789 413 

D. 

Original  Documente  relative  to  the  Diiputo  between  Great  Britain  and  Spain,  in  1790.  .  418 

E. 

Orioinal  Documenta  relative  to  the  Discovery  of  the  Columbia  River,  by  the  Spaniarda  and 
the  Americana 430 

P. 

Sliowing  that  the  Forty-ninth  Parallel  ofLatitude  was  not  aelented  aa  the  Line  of  Separation 
between  the  French  and  the  British  Territoriea  in  North  America,  by  Commiaaionera  ap- 
pointed agreeably  to  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht       4% 

a 

Paperarelatlve  to  the  American  EatebliahmentofAatoria,  on  the  Columbia  River.  .    .    499 

H. 

Statomento  presented  on  each  side  in  the  course  of  the  Conrerencea,  held  at  London,  in  De- 
cember 1K6,  between  Messrs.  Huskisaon  and  Addington,  the  Britiah  Plenipotentiaries,  and 
Mr.  Gallatin,  the  Miniater  Plenipotentiary  of  the  United  Stotea U6 

L 

Documente  relating  to  the  Hudaon'a  Bay  Company 468 

K. 

Treaties  and  Conventiono  relative  H-  >i\n  North- Wei'  l«    itorieeefNorth  America.    .    476 


V 


to  (br  tb«  iaMii«> 
TtnUon  of  IBH, 
tiatioM  batwMii 
Utoa  to  ONgom, 
«. 


»-V  s 


P'orth.Weit 
.    .    .    4U7 


...    411 


t  Muton  of  Uia 

n  at  that  Place 

•    ...    413 


,  in  1790.  .  418 


e  Spaniardi  and 
....    430 


i«  or  Separation 
imiuionen  ap- 
.    .    .    .    4& 


iver.  .    .    499 


ondon,  in  De> 
otentiariei,  and 
.    ...    446 


•    •    •    •    4^9 
lerica.     .    476 


GEOGRAPHY 


or  THE 


WESTERN  SECTION  OF  NORTH  AMERICA. 


UEOGEAPHY 


OP    THE 


WESTERN  SECTION  OF  NORTH  AMERICA. 


_■  / 


GENERAL   VIEW. 

North  America  borders  upon  three  great  divisions  of  the  ocean :  the 
Atlantic  on  the  east  —  the  Arctic  on  the  north  —  and  the  Pacific  on  the 
south  and  west — each  of  which  receives,  either  directly  or  through  its 
gulfs  and  bays,  the  superfluous  waters  from  a  corresponding  great  section 
of  the  continent. 

These  three  great  sections  of  North  America  are  unequal  in  extent, 
and  different  in  the  character  of  their  surface.  At  least  one  half  of  the 
continent  is  drained  by  streams  entering  the  Atlantic;  and  of  that  half, 
the  waters  from  the  larger,  as  well  as  the  more  fertile  portion,  are  carried 
by  the  Mississippi  into  the  Mexican  Gulf.  Of  the  other  two  sections,  that 
which  borders  on  the  Arctic  Sea  is  probably  the  more  extensive.  The 
Atlantic  and  the  Arctic  sections  present  each  a  large  proportion  of  sur- 
face, nearly  plane,  and  comparatively  little  elevated  above  the  sea ;  and  the 
line  of  separation  between  them  is  so  indistinctly  marked  as  to  be,  in 
many  places,  imperceptible.  The  Pacific  section,  on  the  contrary,  is 
traversed  in  every  part  by  steep  and  lofty  ridges  of  highland ;  and  it  is 
completely  divided  from  the  other  portions  by  a  chain  of  mountains, 
extending,  in  continuation  of  the  Andes  of  South  America,  from  the 
Isthmus  of  Panama,  north-westward,  to  the  utmost  extremities  of  the  con- 
tinent in  that  direction. 

Of  the  Atlantic  coast  of  America  it  is  unnecessary  here  to  speak 
particularly.  The  irregularity  of  its  outline,  the  numerous  gulfs  and  bays 
enclosed  by  its  sinuosities,  the  great  rivers  flowing  through  it  into  the  sea, 
the  archipelagoes  in  its  vicinity,  and  all  its  other  characteristic  features, 
may  be  found  minutely  described  in  many  works.  The  only  parts  of  this 
coast,  to  which  reference  will  be  hereafter  made,  are  those  surrounding 
the  Gulf  of  Mexico  and  Hudson's  Bay,  as  many  of  the  most  important 
discoveries  on  the  western  side  of  the  continent  have  been  effected  in 
consequence  of  the  belief  in  the  existence  of  a  direct  navigable  communi- 
cation between  those  portions  of  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific. 

The  Pacific  coast  extends  from  Panama,  near  the  9th  degree  of  latitude,* 
westward  and  northward,  without  any  remarkable  break  in  its  outline,  to 

*  All  latitudes  mentioned  in  ^(he  following  pages  ore  north  latitudes,  unless  other- 
wise specially  stated. 


GENERAL    VIEW    OF    THE    GEOGRAPHT. 


the  23d  parallel,  under  which  the  Gulf  of  California,  separating  the  pen- 
insula of  California  from  the  main  continent  on  the  east,  joins  the  ocean. 
From  the  southern  extremity  of  this  peninsula,  called  Cape  San  Lucas, 
situated  near  the  entrance  of  the  gulf,  the  American  coast  runs  north- 
westward  to  the  foot  of  Mount  St.  Elias,  a  stupendous  volcanic  peak, 
rising  from  the  shore,  under  the  60th  parallel ;  beyond  which  the  con- 
tinent stretches  far  westward,  between  the  Pacific  on  the  south  and  the 
Arctic  Sea  on  the  north,  to  its  termination  at  Cape  Prince  of  Wales, 
near  the  64th  degree. 

Cape  Prince  of  Wales,  the  westernmost  point  of  America,  is  the  eastern 
pillar  of  Bering's  Strait,  a  passage  only  fifty  miles  in  width,  separating  that 
continent  from  Asia,  and  forming  the  only  direct  communication  between 
the  Pacific  and  the  Arctic  Oceans.  Beyond  it,  the  shores  of  Asia  and 
Europe  have  been  explored  in  their  whole  length  on  the  Arctic  Sea, 
though  no  vessel  has  hitherto  made  a  voyage  through  that  sea  from  the 
Atlantic  to  the  Pacific,  or  vice  versa.  The  north  coast  of  America  has 
been  traced  from  Cape  Prince  of  Wales,  north-eastward,  to  Point  Barrow, 
near  the  71st  degree  of  latitude,  and  thence,  eastward,  more  than  fifteen 
hundred  miles,  though  not  continuously,  to  the  Atlantic.  The  portion 
north  of  Hudson's  Bay  is  still  imperfectly  discovered;  and  the  interesting 
question  whether  the  Arctic  Sea  there  mingles  its  waters  with  those  of  the 
Atlantic,  or  is  separated  from  them  by  the  extension  of  the  continent  to 
the  north  pole,  remains  undetermined.  Many  circumstances,  however, 
combine  to  favor  the  belief  that  a  communication  will  be  found  between 
the  two  oceans,  eithe'  'trough  Fox's  Channel,  the  northernmost  part  of 
Hudson's  Bay,  or  thro  ^.i  Lancaster  Sound,  which  joins  Bafiin's  Bay, 
under  the  74th  parallel ;  though  there  is  little  reason  to  expect  that  any 
facilities  for  commercial  intercourse  will  be  gained  by  the  discovery. 

The  Pacific  coast,  between  the  entrance  of  the  Californian  Gulf  and  the 
Strait  of  Fuca,  which  joins  the  ocean  under  the  49th  parallel,  presents 
few  remarkable  indentations,  and  the  islands  in  its  vicinity  are  neither 
numerous  nor  large.  North  of  the  49th  parallel,  on  the  contrary,  the 
mainland  is  every  where  penetrated  by  inlets  and  bays ;  and  many  pen- 
insulas protrude  from  it  into  the  sea.  In  its  vicinity,  moreover,  are 
thousands  of  islands,  some  of  them  very  large,  lying  singly  or  in  groups, 
separated  from  eai^h  other,  and  from  the  continent,  by  narrow,  intricate 
channels.  The  most  extensive  of  these  collections  of  islands  is  the  North- 
West  Archipelago,  nearly  filling  a  great  recess  of  the  coast,  between  the 
48th  and  the  58th  parallels.  Kodiak  is  the  centre  of  another  archipelago, 
on  the  east  side  of  the  peninsula  of  Aliaska ;  and  a  long  line  of  islands, 
forming  the  Aleutian  Archipelago,  stretches  from  the  southern  extremity 
of  Aliaska,  westward,  across  the  sea,  in  the  course  of  the  54th  parallel  of 
latitude,  to  the  vicinity  of  the  opposite  Asiatic  peninsula  of  Kamtchatka. 
The  part  of  the  Pacific  called  the  Sea  of  Kamtchatka,  or  Bering's  Sea, 
north  of  the  Aleutian  chain,  likewise  contains  several  islands,  situated, 
nearly  all,  close  to  the  shores  of  one  or  the  other  continent. 

This  coast,  in  its  whole  length,  from  the  southern  extremity  of  Cali- 
fornia to  Bering's  Strait,  is  bordered  by  lofty  mountains,  which  appear  to 
form  a  continuous  chain,  partially  broken,  in  a  few  places,  by  the  passage 
across  it  of  rivers  from  the  interior.  The  mountains  rise,  for  the  most 
part,  immediately  from  the  sea-shore,  above  which  they  may  be  seen 
towering  one,  two,  and  even  three,  miles  in  perpendicular  elevation :  in 


OBNERAL   VIEW   OF    THE    OEOOR^PHY. 


iting  the  pen- 
ns  the  ocean. 
e  San  Lucas, 
;  runs  north- 
)lcanic  peak, 
lich  the  con- 
outh  and  the 
ce  of  Wales, 

is  the  eastern 
iparating  that 
ition  between 
1  of  Asia  and 
Arctic  Sea, 
sea  from  the 
America  has 
*oint  Barrow, 
e  than  fifteen 
The  portion 
lie  interesting 
h  those  of  the 
i  continent  to 
;es,  however, 
)und  between 
imost  part  of 
Baffin's  Bay, 
)ect  that  any 
scovery. 
Gulf  and  the 
lei,  presents 
are  neither 
ontrary,  the 
d  many  pen- 
loreover,  are 
or  in  groups, 
ow,  intricate 
is  the  North- 
between  the 
archipelago, 
e  of  islands, 
rn  extremity 
h  parallel  of 
iKamtchatka. 
ering's  Sea, 
ds,  situated, 

_nity  of  Cali- 
Ich  appear  to 
1  the  passage 
■or  the  most 
nay  be  seen 
llevation :  in 


some  places,  however,  the  main  ridge  is  separated  from  the  ocean  by 
tracts  of  lower  country,  as  much  as  one  hundred  miles  in  breadth,  trav- 
ersed by  piirallel  lines  of  hills.  This  ridge,  for  which  no  general  name 
has  yet  been  adopted,*  is  almost  entirely  of  volcanic  formation :  being 
part  of  the  great  line  or  system  of  volcanoes,  which  extends  from  Mexico  to 
the  East  Indies,  passing  along  the  west  coast  of  America,  from  the  south- 
ernmost point  of  California  to  the  south-west  extreme  of  Aliaska,  thence 
through  the  Aleutian  Islands  to  Kamtchatka,  and  thence  southward 
tb  -ough  the  Kurile,  the  Japan,  the  Philippine,  and  the  Molucca  Islands. 
There  are  many  elevated  peaks,  nearly  all  of  them  volcanoes,  in  every 
part  of  the  chain ;  the  most  remarkable  break,  or  gap,  is  that  near  the 
4()th  degree  of  latitude,  through  which  the  Columbia  rushes,  at  the  dis- 
tance of  a  hundred  miles  from  the  PaciBc. 

The  great  chain  of  mountains  which  separates  the  streams  emptying 
into  the  Pacific  from  those  flowing  into  the  other  divisions  of  the  ocean, 
runs  through  the  northern  continent,  as  through  the  southern,  in  a  line 
generally  parallel  with  the  shore  of  the  Pacific,  and  much  nearer  to  that 
sea  than  to  the  Atlantic.  Under  the  40th  degree  of  latitude,  where  the 
western  section  of  America  is  widest,  the  distance  across  it,  from  the 
summit  of  the  dividing  chain  to  the  Pacific,  is  about  seven  hundred  miles, 
which  is  not  more  than  one  third  of  the  distance  from  the  same  point  of 
the  mountains  to  the  Atlantic,  measured  in  the  same  latitude. 

The  dividing  chain  south  of  the  40th  degree  of  latitude  has  received 
many  names,  no  one  of  which  seems  to  have  been  universally  adopted. 
It  has  been  called,  by  some  geographers,  the  Anahuac  Mountains;  and  by 
that  name,  though  entirely  unknown  to  the  people  of  the  adjacent  country, 
it  will  be  distinguished  whenever  reference  is  made  to  it  in  the  fol- 
lowing pages. 

The  portion  of  the  great  ridge  north  of  the  40th  parallel  is  generally 
known  as  the  Rocky  or  Stony  Mountains.  From  that  latitude,  its  course 
is  nearly  due  north-westward,  and  gradually  approaching  the  line  of  the 
Pacific  coast,  to  the  54th  degree,  where  the  main  chain  turns  more  west- 
ward, and  continues  in  that  direction  so  far  as  it  has  been  traced,  —  prob- 
ably to  Bering's  Strait.  Another  ridge,  called  the  Chipewyan  Moun- 
tains, indeed,  extends,  as  if  in  prolongation  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  from 
the  53d  parallel,  north-westward,  to  the  Arctic  Sea,  where  it  ends  near  the 
70th  degree  of  latitude ;  bat  the  territory  on  its  western  side  is  drained 
by  streams  entering  that  sea  either  directly,  or  passing  through  the  ridge 
into  the  Mackenzie  River,  which  flows  along  its  eastern  base. 

The  Rocky  Mountains,  so  far  as  their  geological  structure  has  been 
ascertained,  consist  of  primary  formations,  principally  of  granite.  Though 
rising,  in  many  places,  from  eight  to  sixteen  thousand  feet  above  the 
ocean  level,  they  do  not,  in  general,  appear  very  higb  to  the  beholder,  on 
account  of  the  great  elevation  of  the  country  at  tlieir  bases.  On  the  east- 
ern side,  within  a  hundred  and  fifty  miles  of  the  great  chain,  and  running 
nearly  parallel  to  it,  are  several  ridges,  from  which  the  surface  gradually 
declines,  becoming  more  nearly  plane  as  it  approaches  the  Mississippi, 
the  Red  River,  and  Hudson's  Bay.  The  part  of  the  continent  west  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  is,  as  already  stated,  traversed,  in  its  whole  extent,  by 

*  The  author  of  this  work  ventures  to  propose,  for  the  great  ridge  here  mentioned, 
the  name  of  Far- West  Mountain^  which  seems  to  be  more  definite,  and  in  every 
respect  more  appropriate,  than  any  other  which  could  be  adopted. 


GENERAL    VIEW    OF    THE    GEOGRAPHT. 


lofty  ridges,  separated  only  by  narrow  valleys,  or  plains  of  moderate  width. 
The  country  at  the  base  of  the  chain,  on  the  Atlantic  side,  is  probably 
nowhere  less  than  four  thousand  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea ;  and  that 
on  the  Pacific  side  is  doubtless  much  higher. 

The  most  elevated  portion  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  is  about  the  54th 
degree  of  latitude,  where  the  chain  turns  towards  the  west ;  several  peaks 
in  that  vicinity  have  been  ascertained  to  rise  more  than  sixteen  thousand 
feet  above  the  ocean  level.  Many  points,  which  are  undoubtedly  more 
than  ten  thousand  feet  in  height,  have  been  found  in  the  portion  of  the 
dividing  ridge  called  the  Wind  River  Mountains,  near  the  42d  degree  of 
latitude,  and  farther  south,  in  Long's  Range,  where  the  sources  of  the 
Arkansas  River  are  situated. 

Among  these  mountains,  nearly  all  the  greatest  rivers  in  North  America 
have  their  sources.  Within  a  hundred  miles  of  the  point  where  the  chain 
is  crossed  by  the  41st  parallel,  rise  —  on  the  eastern  side  —  the  Missouri, 
the  Yellowstone,  the  Platte,  and  the  Arkansas,  the  waters  of  all  which  are 
carried  through  the  Mississippi  into  the  Mexican  Gulf,  and  the  River 
Bravo  del  Norte,  which  falls  into  the  same  arm  of  the  Atlantic ;  while  —  on 
the  western  side  —  are  found  the  springs  of  the  Lewis,  or  Snake,  the  {,  rinci- 
pal  southern  branch  of  the  Columbia  which  enters  the  Pacific,  and  those 
of  the  Colorado,  which  terminates  in  the  head  or  northern  extremity  of 
the  Californian  Gulf.  The  sources  of  the  Platte,  and  those  of  the  Green 
River,  the  largest  hejid-water  of  the  Colorado,  are  situated  at  opposite  ends 
of  a  cleft,  or  transverse  valley,  in  the  Rocky  Mountains,  called  the  South 
Pass,  in  latitude  of  42  degrees  20  minutes,  which  seems  destined  to  be 
the  gate  of  communication  between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific  regions 
of  the  continent.  In  another  great  cleft,  called  by  the  British  traders 
the  Punch  Bowl,  near  the  53d  parallel,  overhung  by  the  highest  peaks 
of  the  chain,  the  northern  branch  of  the  Columbia  issues  from  a  lake, 
situated  within  a  few  feet  of  another  lake,  from  which  runs  the  west 
branch  of  the  Athabasca,  one  of  ibi  affluents  to  the  Mackenzie;  and  at  a 
short  distance  south  rises  the  Saskatchawine,  which  takes  its  course  east- 
ward to  Lake  Winnipeg,  and  contributes  to  the  supply  of  Hudson's  Bay. 
In  many  places  between  the  42d  and  the  50th  degrees  of  latitude,  the 
upper  streams  of  the  Missouri  lie  very  near  to  those  of  the  Columbia ;  but 
no  gap  or  depression,  which  appears  to  offer  facilities  for  travelling  or 
transportation  of  merchandise,  has  been  discovered  in  that  part  of  the 
dividing  chain. 

The  ridges  between  the  Rocky  Mountains  and  the  great  westernmost 
chain  which  borders  the  Pacific  coast,  appear  to  be  all  united  with  one  or 
both  of  those  ".hains,  and  to  run,  for  the  most  part,  in  the  same  general 
direction,  from  south-east  to  north-west.  The  most  extensive  of  these 
intermediate  ridges,  called  the  Snowy  Mountains,  is  believed  to  stretch 
uninterruptedly  from  ibe  Rocky  Mountains  to  the  westernmost  range,  and 
even  to  the  Pacific,  neatly  in  the  course  of  the  41st  parallel  of  latitude, 
dividing  the  regions  drained  by  the  Columbia,  on  the  north,  from  Cali- 
fornia, on  the  south.  Another  ridge,  called  the  Blue  Mountains,  extends 
northward  from  the  Snowy  Mountains  to  the  47th  parallel,  bounding  the 
valley  of  the  Snake  or  Lewis  River,  the  southern  branch  of  the  Columbia, 
on  the  west.  A  lofty  ridge  also  runs  from  the  westernmost  chain,  near 
the  48th  degree  of  latitude,  northward,  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  which  it 
joins  near  the  54th  degree,  separating  the  waters  of  the  northern  branch 


GENERAL   VIEW    OF    THE    GEOGRAPHY. 


•derate  width. 
!,  is  probably 
gea ;  and  that 

bout  the  54th 
several  peaks 
:een  thousand 
lubtedly  more 
portion  of  the 
12d  degree  of 
ources  of  the 

forth  America 
here  the  chain 
-  the  Missouri, 
f  all  which  are 
md  the  River 
c ;  while  —  on 
ike,  the  {,  rinci- 
•ific,  and  those 
n  extremity  of 
e  of  the  Green 
i  opposite  ends 
ailed  the  South 
destined  to  be 
Pacific  regions 
British  traders 
highest  peaks 
IS  from  a  lake, 
runs  the  west 
inzie ;  and  at  a 
|its  course  east- 
Hudson's  Bay. 
if  latitude,  the 
iolumbia;  but 
travelling  or 
at  part  of  the 


of  the  Columbia  from  those  of  Eraser's  River  on  the  west,  and  constituting 
another  natural  boundary  to  the  territory  drained  by  the  former  stream. 
Of  the  interior  of  California,  little  is  known  with  certainty :  it  is,  however, 
probable  that  a  ridge  extends  from  the  Snowy  Mountains,  near  their 
junction  with  the  Rocky  Mountains,  about  the  42d  degree  of  latitude, 
southward,  to  the  great  westernmost  chain,  near  the  32d  degree,  where  the 
Californian  peninsula  joins  the  continent,  forming  the  western  wall  of  the 
vaDey  of  the  Colorado  River. 

The  territories  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  abound  in  lakes,  several 
of  which  present  surfaces  of  great  extent :  some  of  them  communicate 
with  rivers ;  others  have  no  outlet,  and  their  waters  are  consequently  salt.* 
The  largest,  called  the  Timpanogos,  or  Utah  Lake,  among  the  Snowy 
Mountains,  between  the  40th  and  the  42d  degrees  of  latitude,  belongs  to 
the  latter  class,  and  is  probably  not  less  than  two  thousand  miles  in  area. 
The  most  extensive  of  the  fresh-water  lakes  is  the  Kullispelm,  or  Clarke's 
Lake,  formed  by  the  expansion  of  the  Clarke  River,  in  a  valley  surrounded 
by  high  mountains,  under  the  48th  parallel. 

The  countries  on  the  Pacific  side  of  North  America  differ  materially  in 
climate  from  those  east  of  the  great  dividing  range  of  mountains  situated 
in  the  same  latitudes,  and  at  equal  distances  from  and  elevations  above  the 
ocean.  These  differences  are  less  within  the  torrid  zone,  and  beyond  the 
60th  parallel ;  but  in  the  intermediate  space,  every  part  of  the  Pacific  sec- 
tion is  much  warmer  and  much  drier  than  places  in  the  Atlantic  or  the 
Arctic  sections  under  the  same  conditions  as  above  expressed.  Thus  the 
north-westernmost  regions  of  America  appear  to  be  as  cold,  and  to  receive  as 
much  rain  and  snow  from  the  heavens,  as  those  surrounding  Baffin's  Bay, 
or  those  in  their  own  immediate  vicinity  in  Asia ;  but  m  the  countries  on 
the  Pacific  side  corresponding  in  latitude  and  other  respects  with  Wis- 
consin, Canada,  Nova  Scotia,  and  Newfoundland,  the  ground  is  rarely 
covered  with  snow  for  more  than  three  or  four  weeks  in  each  year,  and  it 
often  remains  unfrozen  throughout  the  winter.  In  the  countries  on  the 
west  coast,  opposite  to  Virginia  and  Carolina,  the  winter  is  merely  a  wet 
season,  no  rain  falling  at  any  other  time;  and  in  the  Californian  peninsula, 
which  is  included  between  the  same  parallels  of  latitude  as  Georgia  and 
Florida,  the  temperature  is  as  high  as  in  any  tropical  region,  and  many 
years  in  succession  pass  by  without  a  shower  or  even  a  cloud.  It  is 
likewise  observed,  especially  between  the  30th  and  the  50th  parallels,  that 
th'  interior  portions  of  the  Pacific  section  are  much  more  dry,  and  the 

*  Wherever  water  runs  on  or  passes  through  the  earth,  it  meets  with  salts,  in 
quantities  greater  or  less,  according  to  the  structure  of  the  soil,  and  the  space  passed 
over  or  through :  these  salts  it  dissolves,  and  carries  to  its  final  recipient,  either  the 
ocean,  or  some  lake  or  marsh,  or  sandy  region,  having  no  communication,  either  above 
or  below  the  surface,  with  any  lower  recipient ;  and,  as  the  water  can  onlv  escape 
naturally  from  this  recipient,  by  evaporation,  which  cannot  abstract  a  single  sal-ne 
particle,  it  follows,  as  a  necessary  consequence,  that  the  salt  must  always  be  accumu- 
lating there.  Thus  the  Dead  Sea,  which  has  no  outlet,  is  saturated  with  salts,  while 
the  Lake  of  Tiberias,  from  which  it  receives  its  waters  through  the  Jordan,  is  per- 
fectly fresh ;  and  innumerable  other  instances  may  be  cited.  In  like  manner,  the 
ground  in  countries  from  which  the  water  is  not  regularly  carried  olf  by  streams  or 
miiltration,  is  generally  impregnated  with  salt ;  of  vvliich  examples  are  offered  in  the 
high  plains  ot  Mexico,  in  some  valleys  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  in  many 
parts  of  the  United  States.  The  reverse  may  not  be  always  trae  ;  but  the  saltness  of 
a  large  body  of  water,  or  a  large  extent  of  ground,  affords  strong  reasons  for  suspect- 
ing the  want  of  a  drain  from  it  into  a  lower  recipient. 


:    ^.i 


Ml 


9  GENERAL    VIEW   OF   THE    OEOORAPHT. 

difference  in  temperature  between  the  day  and  the  aucceeding  night  is, 
■t  all  seasons,  bnt  particularly  in  summer,  greater  than  in  the  countries 
nearer  to  the  ocean.  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  add,  that,  in  territories 
so  scantily  and  irregularly  supplied  with  water,  the  surface  must  be,  in 
general,  bare  and  destitute  of  vegetation ;  and  such  is  the  character  of 
the  greater  portion  of  the  continent  west  of  the  dividing  ange  of 
mountains. 

The  central  regions  of  the  continent  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains 
exhibit,  though  in  a  less  degree,  the  same  peculiarities  of  climate  with 
those  adjoining,  in  the  Pacific  section.  The  vast  plains,  extending  from 
the  vicinity  of  the  dividing  chain  towards  the  Mississippi,  south  of  the 
60th  parallel  of  latitude,  are  almost  as  arid  and  barren  as  the  countries  on 
the  other  side  of  the  ridge;  the  rains  are  neither  frequent  nor  heavy 
during  the  warm  months,  and  the  surface,  except  in  a  few  spots  near  the 
rivers,  consists  of  sand  and  sandstone  strongly  impregnated  with  salt, 
and  affords  support  only  to  stiff  grass  and  shrubs.  Descending  towards 
the  Mississippi,  the  climate  and  soil  become  more  favorable  to  vegetable 
life,  and  the  country  gradually  assumes  the  characters  of  the  other  Atlan- 
tic regions.  North  of  the  50th  parallel,  there  is  more  ram  or  snow,  at  all 
seasons,  on  each  side  of  the  ridge,  though  less  on  the  west  than  on  the 
feast ;  the  intensity  of  the  cold,  and  its  long  duration,  particularly  on  the 
eastern  sids,  render  those  territories  almost  all  uninhabitable  by  those 
who  depend  on  agriculture  for  subsistence. 

In  consequence  of  this  greater  aridity  of  the  climate  on  the  western  side 
of  America,  the  irregularity  of  the  surface,  and  the  proximity  of  *he 
dividing  chain  of  mountains  to  the  coast,  the  rivers  on  that  side  are 
generally  neither  so  long,  nor  so  abundant  in  water,  nor  navigable  to 
such  distances  from  their  mouths,  as  those  which  fall  into  the  Atlantic. 
The  Columbia  and  the  Colorado  are  the  only  streams  known  to  flow  from 
America  into  the  Pacific,  which  can  be  compared,  in  any  of  these 
respects,  with  several  in  the  other  sections  of  the  continent ;  yet  they 
are  each  certainly  inferior  to  the  St.  Lawrence,  the  Mississippi,  the 
Orinoco,  the  Amazon,  and  the  Plate,  and  probably,  also,  to  the  Macken- 
aiie.  These  and  the  other  rivers  of  Western  America  run,  in  nearly  their 
whole  course,  through  deep  ravines,  among  stony  mountains ;  and  they 
are,  for  the  most  part,  crossed  at  short  intervals  by  ledges  of  rock,  pro- 
ducing falls  and  rapids,  which  render  all  navigation  on  them  impossible, 
and  to  overcome  which,  all  the  resources  of  art  would  be  unavailing. 

In  the  territory  east  of  the  dividing  chain,  and  south  of  the  50th  paral- 
lel of  latitude,  are  many  rivers  flowing  from  the  mountains  to  the  Missis- 
sippi; but  none  of  them  seem  calculated  to  serve  as  channels  for  commu- 
nication between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific  regions.  The  Missouri  and 
the  Yellowstone  each  take  a  devious  course ;  so  that,  after  ascending 
either  of  them  to  the  head  of  its  navigation,  the  distance  to  the  habitable 
countries  on  the  Pacific  is  almost  as  great  as  from  a  point  on  the  Missouri, 
more  than  fifteen  hundred  miles  below.  The  Platte  flows  nearly,  under 
the  42d  parallel  of  latitude,  flrom  its  source  in  the  South  Pass,  the  princi- 
pal cleft  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  to  the  Missouri,  precisely  in  the  direc- 
tion most  favorable  for  intercourse  between  the  Mississippi  and  the 
Columbia  countries;  but  it  is  the  most  shallow  of  all  large  rivers:  travers- 
ing a  surface  nearly  plain,  the  increase  of  its  waters,  produced  annually 
by  the  rains  and  melting  of  the  snows,  only  serves  to  render  it  wider, 


GSMEIUL   VIEW    OF   THE   eEOGKAPHT. 


^ 


'•f 


without  any  considerable  increase  of  its  depth,  which  is  every  where  too 
small  for  the  passage  of  tho  lightest  boats.  Nature  has,  however,  pro- 
vided a  road  along  its  banks,  over  which  heavy  wagons  now  annually  roll 
between  Missouri  and  Oregon;  an'  vith  a  little  assistance  from  art  in 
bome  places,  this  road  may  be  renov    d  one  of  the  best  in  the  world. 

The  territory  &rther  north,  extending  from  the  Rocky  Mountains  to 
Hudson's  Bay  and  the  Arctic  Sea,  is  traversed  by  innumerable  rivers 
falling  into  those  parts  of  the  ocean.  Of  these,  the  principal  are  the  Red 
River,  of  the  north,  the  Assinaboin,  and  the  Saskatchawine,  emptying  into 
Lake  Winnipeg,  which  communicates  by  several  channels  with  Hudson's 
Bay,  and  the  Misainippi  or  Churchill's  River,  falling  directly  into  that 
bay ;  while  the  Arctic  Sea  receives,  nearly  under  the  69th  parallel  of 
latitude,  Back's  or  the  Great  Fish  River,  the  Coppermine,  and  the 
Mackenzie,  the  latter  draining  a  territory  scarcely  less  extensive  thao 
that  of  the  Columbia.  The  regions  crossed  by  these  rivers  are,  in  gen- 
eral, so  nearly  level,  that  it  is,  in  mauy  places,  difficult  to  trace  the  limits 
of  the  tracts  from,  which  the  waters  flow  into  theic  respective  channels  or 
basins.  They  contain  numerous  lakes,  some  very  large,  and  nearly  all 
connected  with  each  other,  and  with  the  Arctic  Sea  on  the  north,  and 
Hudson's  Bay  on  the  east ;  and  the  head-waters  of  the  rivers  supplying 
these  reservoirs  are  situated  in  the  vicinity  of  the  sources  of  the  Missis- 
sippi, or  of  the  Missouri,  or  of  the  Columbia,  or  of  the  streams  falling 
into  Lake  Superior.  The  rivers  above  named  are  all  navigable  for  great 
distances  by  boats,  and  they  thus  afford  considerable  advantages  for  com- 
mercial intercourse ;  goods  being  now  transported  across  the  continent, 
from-the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  to  Hudson's  Bay  or  to  Montreal,  and 
vice  versa,  almost  entirely  by  water. 

Under  circumstances  of  climate,  soil,  and  conformation  of  surface,  so 
diiTerent,  it  may  be  supposed  that  considerable  differences  should  exist 
between  the  productions  of  the  great  divisions  of  America  here  men- 
tioned. It  has  been,  accordingly,  found  that  few  species  of  plants  or  of 
animals  are  common  to  them  all,  and  that  many  which  abound  in  one  arc 
rare,  if  not  entirely  wanting,  in  the  others.  Some  plants,  especially  the 
pines  and  cedars,  acquire  a  greater  development  in  the  regions  near  the 
I'acific  than  in  any  other  country ;  but  a  large  portion  of  those  territories 
is,  from  reasons  already  shown,  entirely  and  irretrievably  barren.  In 
recompense  for  this  sterility  of  the  soil,  the  rivers  of  the  Pacific  section 
abound  in  fish,  particularly  in  salmon,  which  ascend  them  to  great  dis- 
tances from  the  sea,  and  form  the  principal  support  of  the  inhabitants. 

With  respect  to  the  aborigines  of  these  countries,  the  Arctic  coasts 
of  America  are  occupied  by  a  race  called  Esquimaux,  distinguished  by 
peculiar  marks  from  all  others,  who  are  likewise  found  on  the  northern- 
most shores  of  the  Pacific,  and  particularly  in  the  islands  between  the 
two  continents,  intermingled  with  the  Tchukski,  the  aborigines  of  north- 
ernmost Asia.  The  remainder  of  the  Pacific  section,  and,  indeed,  of  the 
whole  American  continent,  except,  perhaps,  Patagonia,  appears  to  have 
been  inhabited,  before  the  entrance  of  the  Europeans,  by  one  and  the 
same  race ;  the  natives  of  the  different  portions  differing  but  slightly,  con- 
sidering the  varieties  of  climate,  soil,  and  situation,  and  the  consequent 
varieties  in  modes  of  life.  That  some  admixture  with  the  races  of  South- 
eastern Asia  may  have  taken  place,  is  not  improbable,  from  the  fact  that 
Japanese  vessels  have  more  than  once  been  thrown  on  the  north-west 

3 


I   I 


10 


GENERIL   VIEW  OF   THE   OEOOBAPHT. 


coasts  of  America  since  the  beginning  of  the  present  century ;  but  no 
evidence  or  strong  ground  of  supposition  of  such  admixture  has  been 
discovered  in  the  appearance  of  any  part  of  the  population  of  those 
coasts. 

The  settlements  of  civilized  nations  in  the  Pacific  section  of  North 
America  are  inconsiderable  in  extent.  Those  of  the  Russians  are  scat- 
tered along  the  coasts  and  islands  north  of  the  latitude  of  64  degrees  40 
minutes;  they  are  all  under  the  direction  of  the  Russian  American 
Trading  Company,  and  are  devoted  entirely  to  the  collection  of  the 
furs  and  skins  of  the  land  and  sea  animals  abounding  in  that  quarter,  of 
which  large  quantities  are  transported  for  sale  to  Asia  and  Europe.  Those 
of  the  British  and  of  citizens  of  the  United  States  are  intermingled 
throughout  the  regions  south  and  east  of  the  Russian  territory,  to  Cali- 
fornia; the  British,  in  general,  occupying  the  parts  north,  and  the 
Americans  those  south,  of  the  Columbia  River,  which  enters  the  Pacific 
near  the  46th  degree  of  latitude.  The  people  of  both  the  last-mentioned 
nations  have  hitherto,  likewise,  been  employed  principally  in  the  fur  trade ; 
but,  that  business  having  become  less  profitable  of  late  years,  from  the 
diminution  of  the  animals,  agricultural  establishments  have  been  formed, 
especially  by  the  citizens  of  the  United  States,  in  the  vicinity  uf  the 
Columbia.  The  British  are  all  under  the  control  of  the  Hudson's  Bay 
Company,  which  possesses,  ir'  virtue  of  a  royal  grant,  the  privilege,  in 
exclusion  of  other  British  subjects,  of  trading  in  all  the  Indian  countries 
of  North  America  belonging  to,  or  claimed  by,  that  power;  and  they 
are  protected  and  restrained  by  British  laws,  under  an  act  of  Parliament 
extending  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Canada  courts  over  those  countries,  so 
far  as  relates  to  subjects  of  that  nation.  The  citizens  of  the  United  States, 
on  the  contrary,  are  deprived  of  all  protection,  and  are  independent  of 
all  control;  as  they  are  not  subject  to  British  laws,  and  their  own  govern- 
ment exercises  no  authority  whatsoever  over  any  part  of  America  west  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains.  In  California,  south  of  the  38th  degree  of  lati- 
tude, are  many  colonies,  garrisons,  and  missionary  stations,  founded  by 
the  Spaniards  ouring  the  last  century,  and  now  maintained  by  the  Mexi- 
cans, who  succeeded  to  the  rights  of  Spain  in  1821.  They  are  all  situ- 
ated in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  coasts,  the  interior  regions  being,  as 
yet,  almost  unknown.  It  is  worthy  of  remark,  that  California,  though 
thinly  inhabited  by  a  wretched,  indolent  population,  is  the  only  part  of 
the  Pacific  section  of  North  America  which  can  be  considered  as  regularly 
settled,  —  which  possesses  an  organized  civil  and  social  system,  and  where 
individuals  hold  a  property  in  the  soil  secured  to  them  by  law. 

Each  ,of  these  four  nations  claims  the  exclusive  possession  of  a  portion 
of  the  territory  on  the  Pacific  side  of  America,  north  of  the  Californian 
Gulf;  and  each  of  them  is  a  party  to  some  treaty  with  another,  for  the 
temporary  use,  or  definitive  sovereignty,  of  such  portion.  Thus  it  has 
been  agreed,  by  treaty,  in  1819,  between  the  United  States  and  Spain,  — 
renewed,  in  1828,  between  the  United  States  and  Mexico,  —  that  a  line, 
drawn  from  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the  Pacific,  in  the  course  of  the 
42d  parallel  of  latitude,  should  separate  the  dominions  of  the  former 
power  on  the  north  from  those  of  Mexico  on  the  south.  It  was,  in  like 
manner,  agreed,  in  1824,  by  convention  between  the  United  States  and 
Russia,  that  the  former  nation  should  make  no  establishments  on  the 
coasts  north  of  the  parallel  of  54  degrees  40  minutes,  and  that  the  latter 


QCNERAL    VIEW     It   tlfg    flf "  .RArBT. 


•»        \ 


'If 


ion  of  North 


should  make  none  south  of  the  .,  it  line;  bi  this  con  tMin  was 
tralized,  and,  in  fact,  abrosated,  by  a  treaty  conclucli  '  •Hi^n  K  ■«i« 
and  Great  Britain  in  the  foTlowinff  year,  by  whicii  all  thi  rriu>ri«!8 '  .he 
main  land  and  islands,  north  and  west  of  a  line  dnnvn  •m  the  lai  4» 
of  64  degrees  40  minutes,  north-westward,  along  the  In  tmU  b<»ri)i  .itf 
the  Pacinc  coasts,  to  Mount  St.  Elias,  and  thence  due  iidfi  .•  the  <ctic 
Sea,  were  to  belong  to  Russia,  while  all  east  and  south  of  that  line  were 
to  be  the  property  of  Great  Britain. 

Thus,  on  the  western  side  of  North  America,  two  lines  of  distinct 
boundary,  or  partition,  each  traversing  the  whole  breadth  of  the  Pacific 
section,  have  been  recognized;  the  one  between  two  p6wers.  Great  Britain 
and  Russia,  the  other  between  two  different  powers,  the  United  States  and 
Mexico, — Qeither  of  which  is,  however,  admitted  by  the  third  power,  claim- 
ing, also,  the  possession  of  territories  contiguous  to  it.  Of  the  vast  di- 
vision of  the  continent  and  the  adjacent  islands  between  these  two  lines, 
no  spot  has  yet  been  assigned,  by  mutual  agreement,  to  any  civilized 
nation.  The  United  States  claim  the  territories  northward  from  the  42d 
parallel,  and  Great  Britain  claims  those  extending  south  and  east  from  the 
other  line,  each  to  a  distance  undefined,  but  so  far  as  to  secure  for  itself 
the  whole,  or  nearly  the  whole,  of  the  regions  traversed  by  the  Columbia 
River.  The  American  government  has  more  than  once  proposed  to 
adopt  the  forty-ninth  parallel  of  latitude  as  the  dividing  line;  the  British 
have,  however,  constantly  refused  to  assent  to  that  or  any  other  arrange- 
ment which  should  deprive  them  of  the  coasts  and  territories  north  of 
the  Columbia  River ;  and  neither  nation  being  willing  to  recede  from 
its  pretensions,  all  the  countries  claimed  by  both,  west  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  remain,  by  convention  between  the  two  governments,  con- 
cluded in  1827,  free  and  open  to  the  citizens  or  subjects  of  both. 

Such  is  the  present  political  condition  of  the  Pacific  regions  of  North 
America.  This  anomalous  state  of  things  cannot,  however,  endure  much 
longer.  The  people  of  the  United  States  are  rapidly  colonizing  the  fertile 
portions  of  the  territory  on  the  lower  Columbia ;  and  no  one  acquainted 
with  their  character  can  suppose  that  they  will  submit  to  be  deprived  of 
their  political  birthright  in  those  countries,  while  they  have  the  slightest 
prospect  of  vindicating  it. 

Having  presented  this  concise  general  view  of  the  western  section  of 
North  America,  its  divisions  will  now  be  described  in  detail,  beginning 
with  the  most  southern,  under  the  heads  of  California,  Oregon,  and  Rus- 
sian America. 


.  \ 


CALIFORNIA. 


Thb  name  California  was  first  assigned,  by  the  Spaniards,  in  15!)6,  to 
the  great  peninsula  which  extends  on  the  western  side  of  North  America, 
from  the  32d  degree  of  latitude,  southwardly,  to  and  within  the  limits  of 
the  torrid  zone ;  and  it  was  afterwards  made  to  comprehend  the  whole 
division  of  the  continent  north-west  of  Mexico,  just  as  that  of  Florida 
was  applied  to  the  opposite  portion  on  the  Atlantic  side.  At  the  present 
day,  California  is  usually  considered  as  including  the  peninsula,  and  the 
territory  extending  from  it,  on  the  Pacific,  northward,  as  far  as  the  limits 
of  Oregon,  or  the  country  of  the  Columbia  River ;  Cape  Mendocino,  in 
the  latitude  of  40  degrees  10  minutes,  being  assumed  as  the  point  of 
separation  of  the  two  coasts.  The  Mexican  government,  however,  re- 
gards the  42d  parallel  of  latitude  as  the  northern  limit  of  California, 
agreeably  to  the  treaty  concluded  between  that  republic  and  the  United 
States  of  America  in  1828. 

California  is  naturally  divided  into  two  portions  —  the  peninsular,  called 
Old  or  Lower  California  —  and  the  continental,  or  New,  or  Upper  Califor- 
nia, the  line  of  separation  between  which  runs  nearly  along  the  32d 
parallel  of  latitude,  from  the  head  or  northern  extremity  of  the  Californian 
Gulf,  westward  to  the  Pacific. 

The  Gulf  of  California  will  be  first  considered.  This  Gulf,  called  by 
the  Spaniards  the  Sea  of  Cortes,  but  more  commonly  the  Vermilion  Sea, 
(Mar  Vermejo,)  is  a  great  arm  of  the  Pacific,  which  joins  that  ocean 
under  the  23d  parallel  of  latitude,  and  thence  extends  north-eastward,  be- 
tween the  American  continent  on  the  east  and  the  Californian  peninsula  on 
the  west,  to  its  head  or  termination,  near  the  32d  parallel,  where  it  receives 
the  waters  of  the  Colorado  and  Gila  Rivers.  Its  length  is  about  seven 
hundred  miles ;  its  breadth,  at  its  junction  with  the  Pacific,  is  one  hundred 
miles:  farther  north,  it  is  somewhat  wider,  and,  still  farther,  its  shores 
gradually  approach  each  other,  until  they  become  the  banks  of  the  Colo- 
rado. It  contains  many  islands,  of  which  the  largest  are  Carmen,  near 
the  25th  degree  of  latitude,  Tiburon  and  Santa  Ines,  near  the  29th,  and 
some  others  ot  the  northern  extremity.  The  western  or  peninsular  coasts 
of  the  gulf  are  high,  steep,  and  rocky,  offering  very  few  places  of  security 
for  vessels ;  and  not  a  single  stream  which  deserves  the  name  of  a  river 
enters  it  on  that  side.  The  eastern  or  continental  shores  are  generally 
low,  and  the  sea  in  their  vicinity  is  so  shallow  as  to  render  the  navigation 
along  them  dangerous. 

The  peninsular  coast  of  the  gulf  has  long  been  celebrated  for  the  great 
size  and  beauty  of  the  pearls  contained  in  the  oysters  which  abound  in 
the  sea  on  that  side ;  and  the  search  for  those  precious  stones  has  always 
formed  the  principal  employment  of  people  of  civilized  nations  in  that 
quarter.     The  pearls  are  procured,  with  much  danger  and  difficulty,  by 


GEOORAPHY    OF    CALirORNU. 


13 


in  1596,  to 
h  America, 
10  limitH  of 
1  the  whole 
of  Florida 
the  present 
Lila,  and  the 
IS  the  limits 
indocino,  in 
[)e  point  of 
lowever,  re- 
California, 
1  the  United 

sular,  called 

jper  Califor- 

mg  the  32d 

Californian 

called  by 
milion  Sea, 
that  ocean 
istward,  be- 
■eninsula  on 
it  receives 
}out  seven 
me  hundred 


,  its  shores 
f  the  Colo- 

f 

rmen,  near 

1 

!  29th,  and 

■;^| 

lular  coasts 

\ 

of  security 

S 

J  of  a  river 

1 

!  generally 
navigation 

'! 

r  the  great 
abound  in 

las  always 
)n3  in  that 

BSculty,  by 

Indians,  who  dive  for  them  to  the  depth  of  twenty  or  more  feet,  and  of' 
whom  a  large  proportion  are  annually  drowned  or  devoured  by  sharks. 
A  roinpnny,  formed  at  London  in  IHMr),  Mcnt  l.ieutenarif  Hardy  to  the 
Californian  coast,  with  two  vessels,  cnrryin^j  diving-bells,  by  the  aid  of 
which  it  was  expected  that  the  pearl  tishory  might  be  conducted  more 
safely,  as  well  as  profitably,  than  by  the  ordinary  means;  but,  unfortu- 
nately, it  proved  that  the  oysters  always  lie  in  crevices  of  Ihe  rocks,  to 
which  no  access  can  be  had  by  pcrsonti  in  the  diving-bell,  and  the  enter- 
prise wus,  in  consequence,  abandoned.  The  value  of  the  pearls  obtained 
appears  to  be  trifling  when  compared  with  the  time  and  lalior  employed  in 
the  Hoiirch  for  them.  In  ISiW,  eight  vessels  engaged  in  the  business  col- 
lected together  five  pounds  of  pearls,  which  were  worth  about  ten  thousand 
dollars.  Occasionally,  however,  a  single  stone  is  found  of  value  sufficient 
to  atford  compensation  for  years  of  fruitless  labor;  and  some  of  the  rich- 
est pearls  in  the  regalia  of  Spain  are  the  produce  of  the  fishery  in  the 
Californian  Gulf 

The  territory  extending  east  from  the  Californian  Gulf  to  the  summit 
of  the  great  dividing  cham  of  the  Anuhuac  Mountains,  forms  two  politi- 
cal divisions  of  the  Mexican  republic,  of  which  the  northern  is  c" 
Sonora,  (a  corruption  of  Sefiora,)  and  the  southern  Sinaloa.  'i  ( 
countries  are,  as  yet,  thinly  inhabited :  from  the  general  produr  • 
ness  of  their  soil,  the  salubrity  of  their  climate,  and  the  number  and  ricn- 
ness  of  their  mines  of  gold  and  silver,  they  seem  calculated  for  the  support 
of  a  large  population,  for  which  the  gulf,  and  the  many  rivers  (lowing 
into  it  from  the  mountains  on  the  ertst,  wiil  afford  the  means  of  communi- 
cating with  other  lands.  The  port  of  GuayiT^as,  in  Sonora,  in  latitude  of 
27  degrees  40  minutes,  is  said  to  be  one  of  the  best  on  the  Pacific  side 
of  America.  Mazatlan,  in  Sonora,  at  the  entrance  of  the  Californian 
Gulf,  has  been,  hitherto,  ni jre  generally  frequented ;  but  it  >s  neither  so 
secure  as  Guaymas,  nor  is  the  territory  in  its  vicinit)  so  productive  or 
healthy.  South-east  of  Mazatlan,  in  latitude  of  27  degrees  29  minutes, 
is  San  Bias,  the  principal  commercial  port  of  Mexico  on  the  Pacific,  one 
of  the  hottest  and  most  unhealthy  spots  on  the  globe ;  and  still  farther,  in 
the  same  direction,  are  Navidad,  Acapulco,  and  the  harbor  of  Tehuante- 
pec,  all  celebrated,  in  former  times,  as  places  of  trade,  but  now  decaying 
and  deserted. 

The  peninsula  of  California  is  about  one  hundred  and  thirty  miles  in 
breadth  where  it  joins  the  continent,  under  the  32d  parallel,  that  is  to  ?ay, 
nearly  in  the  same  latitude  with  the  city  of  Savannah,  in  Georgia. 
Thence  it  extends  south-eastward,  varying,  but  generally  diminishing,  in 
breadth  between  the  Pacific  on  the  west  and  the  Californian  Gulf  on  the 
east,  to  its  termination  in  two  points  —  Cape  San  Lucas,  the  south- 
westernmost,  in  latitude  of  22  degrees  52  minutes,  corresponding  nearly 
with  that  of  the  city  of  Havanna,  in  Cuba  —  and  Cape  Palmo,  60  miles 
east  by  north  of  the  other,  at  the  entrance  of  the  Californian  Gulf. 

Continental  California  extends,  upon  the  Pacific,  from  the  32d  parallel  of 
latitude,  wl.ore  it  joins  the  peninsula,  about  seven  hundred  miles  north-west- 
ward to  Oregon,  from  which  it  is  divided,  nearly  in  the  course  of  the  42d 
parallel, — that  is,  nearly  in  the  latitude  of  Boston, — by  a  chain  of  highlands 
called  the  Snowy  Mountains,  the  Sierra  Nevada  of  the  Spaniards.  Its 
boundaries  on  the  west  are  not,  as  yet,  determined  politically  by  the 
Mexican  government;    nor  do  geographers  agree  with  regard  to  its 


14 


GEOGRAPHY    OF    CALIFORNIA. 


natural  limita  in  that  direction.  By  some,  it  is  considered  as  embracing, 
like  Chili,  only  the  territory  between  the  Pacific  and  the  summit  of  the 
great  mountain  chain,  which  borders  the  western  side  of  the  continent : 
others  extend  its  limits  to  the  Colorado ;  while  others  include  in  it,  and 
others  again  exclude  from  it,  the  entire  regions  drained  by  that  river. 
The  only  portion  occupied  by  the  Mexicans,  or  of  which  any  distinct  ac- 
counts have  been  obtained,  is  that  between  the  great  chain  of  mountains 
and  the  ocean ;  the  country  east  of  that  ridge  to  the  Colorado  appears  to 
be  an  uninhabitable  desert. 

The  Cdifornian  peninsula  is  merely  the  southern  portion  of  the  great 
westernmost  chain  of  mountains,  prolonged  through  the  Pacific.  It 
consists  entirely  of  high,  stony  ridges,  separated  by  narrow,  sandy  val- 
leys, and  contains  no  tracts  of  level  ground  of  any  extent.  At  its 
southern  extremity,  the  earth  is  sometimes  visited  by  showers  in  the  sum- 
mer, but  never  at  any  other  period  of  the  year :  near  its  junction  with 
the  continent,  rain  is  seen  only  in  winter ;  and  in  the  intermediate  por- 
tion, many  years  in  succession  pass  by  without  the  appearance  of  a 
drop  of  water  from  the  heavens,  or  indeed  of  a  single  cloud,  while  the 
rays  of  the  sun,  thus  uninterrupted  in  their  passage,  produce  a  heat  as 
intense  as  that  in  any  other  region  of  the  world.  Under  such  circum- 
stances, as  might  be  supposed,  the  springs  of  water  are  few  and  slender, 
and  the  surface  is  almost  every  where  destitute  of  vegetation.  The 
peninsula  is,  on  the  whole,  an  irreclaimable  desert :  yet,  wherever  irri- 
gation is  practicable,  the  productiveness  of  the  soil  is  extraordinary  ;  and 
the  little  oases  formed  by  the  passage  of  a  slender  rivulet  through  a 
narrow,  sandy  defile,  may  thus  be  made  to  yield  all  the  fruits  of  tropical 
climes  in  abundance,  and  of  the  finest  quality. 

The  southern  portion  of  the  peninsula  contains  several  mines  of  gold, 
which  have  been  worked,  though  not  extensively.  Tha  only  mine  as  yet 
discovered  in  continental  California  is  one  of  gold,  situated  at  the  foot 
of  the  great  westernmost  range  of  mountains,  on  the  west,  at  the  dis- 
tance of  twenty-five  miles  from  Angeles,  the  largest  town  in  the  country. 
It  is  said  to  be  of  extraordinary  richness. 

The  animals  originally  found  in  California  were  buffaloes,  — though  in 
small  numbers,  compared  with  those  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  —  deer, 
elk,  bears,  wild  hogs,  wild  sheep,  ocebtes,  beavers,  foxes,  and  many  others, 
generally  of  species  different  from  those  in  the  Atlantic  regions  of  the 
continent.  Sea  otters  were  very  abundant  on  the  northern  parts  of  the 
coasts,  but  they  have  disappeared.  Cattle  and  horses  were  introduced  by 
the  Spaniards  from  Mexico,  and  have  increased  in  an  extraordinary  de- 
gree, particularly  the  cattle,  with  which  the  valleys  near  the  coast  of  the 
continental  portion  are  covered.  One  of  the  scourges  of  this  country  is 
the  chapul,  a  kind  of  grasshopper,  which  appears  in  summer,  especially 
after  a  mild  winter,  in  clouds  resembling  the  locusts  of  Southern  Asia, 
destroying  every  vegetable  substance  in  their  way. 

The  aborigines  of  California  are  placed,  by  those  who  have  had  the 
best  opportunity  of  studying  their  character  and  disp^^^ition,  with  the 
Hottentots,  the  Patagonians,  and  the  Australians,  among  the  lowest  of  the 
human  race  ;  those  of  the  continental  portion  being  considered  less  fero- 
cious, but  more  indolent  and  vicious,  than  the  natives  of  the  peninsula. 
The  Spaniards  made  many  attempts,  during  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth 
centuries,  to  found  settlements  in  the  country,  all  of  which  proved 


t 


GEOGRAPHY    OF    CALIFORNIA. 


15 


abortive;  until,  at  length,  in  1699,  the  Jesuits,  by  permission  of  the  king 
of  Spain,  undertook  to  convert  the  natives  to  Christianity,  and  to  initiate 
them  into  the  usages  and  arts  of  civilized  life.  With  this  view,  they 
formed  a  number  of  missions,  near  the  east  coasts  of  the  peninsula,  and, 
by  untiring  assiduity,  they  had  succeeded  partly  in  their  objects  before 
1768,  when  the  Jesuits  were,  in  execution  of  a  decree  issued  at  Madrid, 
expelled  from  the  Spanish  dominions  ;  their  establishments  were  then 
confided  to  the  Dominicans,  under  whose  charge  they  have  since  re- 
mained with  little  advantage  in  any  way. 

The  immber  of  persons  in  the  peninsula  at  present  has  been  variously 
estimated ;  from  the  best  accounts,  it  does  not  exceed  five  thousand,  of 
whom  a  small  proportion  only  are  Mexicans,  and  very  few  are  of  European 
origin.  The  principal  places  now  occupied  by  the  Mexicans  are  —  Loreto, 
formerly  the  principal  mission  of  the  Jesuits,  and  now  the  capital  of  Old 
California,  a  miserable  village  of  about  two  hundred  persons,  situated 
near  the  gulf,  opposite  the  Island  of  Carmen,  in  latitude  of  25  degrees  14 
minutes  —  La  Paz,  on  the  Bay  of  Pichilingue,  a  little  farther  south,  the 
port  of  communication  with  Mexico —  and  Port  San  Jose,  near  Cape  San 
Lucas,  where  an  establishment  has  been  recently  formed  in  a  plain,  watered 
by  a  slender  rill.  From  these  places,  small  quantities  of  tortoise  shells,  dried 
meat,  cheese,  and  dried  fruits,  the  latter  said  to  be  excellent,  are  sent  to 
San  Bias,  in  Mexico,  or  sold  to  trading  vessels  which  occasionally  enter 
the  gulf  during  their  tour  along  the  coasts.  There  are  several  other 
spots  on  the  gulf  offering  good  harbors  for  vessels,  though  they  present  no 
facilities  for  settlements  ;  among  which  the  principal  is  the  BayofMulege, 
near  the  latitude  of  27 J  degrees. 

On  the  west,  or  Pacific,  side  of  the  peninsula  no  settlement  has  ever 
been  formed  or  attempted  by  a  civilized  nation.  This  coast  offers  many 
excellent  harbors,  but  the  want  of  fresh  water  in  their  vicinity  must  ever 
prove  an  effectual  obstacle  to  their  occupation.  The  principal  harbors 
are,  the  Bay  of  La  Magdalena,  in  latitude  of  25  degrees,  which  is  separated 
from  the  ocean  by  the  long  island  of  Santa  Margarita,  and  appears  to 
stretch  much  farther  inland  than  had  been  supposed  ;  the  Bay  of  Sebas« 
tian  Vizcaino,  under  the  28th  parallel,  east  of  the  Isle  of  Cedars;  Port 
San  Bartolome,  called  Turtle  Bay  by  the  British  and  American  traders , 
and  Port  San  Quintin,  an  excellent  harbor,  with  fresh  water  near  it,  in  lat« 
itude  of  30  degrees  20  minutes,  called  by  the  old  Spanish  navigators  the 
Port  of  the  Eleven  Thousand  Virgins,  which  was  rediscovered  in  1800  by 
Captain  O'Kean,  a  fur-trader  from  Boston.  At  the  distance  of  a  hundred 
and  twenty  miles  from  this  coast,  under  the  parallel  of  28  degrees  45 
minutes,  is  the  small,  rocky  island  of  Guadelupe,  the  existence  of  which, 
afler  it  had  been  denied  by  many  navigators,  has  been  ascertained. 

Northward  from  the  peninsula,  the  great  westernmost  chain  of  moun- 
tains continues  necirly  parallel  with  the  Pacific  coast,  to  the  34th  degree 
of  latitude,  under  which  rises  Mount  San  Bernardin,  one  of  the  hignest 
peaks  in  California,  about  forty  miles  from  the  ocean.  Farther  north, 
the  coast  turns  more  to  the  west,  and  the  space  between  it  and  the  sum- 
mit line  of  the  mountains  becomes  wider,  so  as  to  exceed  eighty  miles  in 
some  places ;  the  intermediate  region  being  traversed  by  lines  of  hills,  or 
smaller  mountains,  connected  with  the  main  range.  The  principal  of 
these  inferior  ridges  extends  from  Mount  San  Bernardin  north-westward 
to  its  termination  on  the  south  side  of  the  entrance  of  the  great  Bay  of 


16 


CKOGRAl'UV    OV    CALIFOaMA. 


•  I 


J  i 


San  Francisco,  near  the  38th  degree  of  latitude,  where  it  is  called  the 
San  Bruno  Mountains.  Between  this  range  and  the  coast  run  the 
Santa  Barbara  Mountains,  terminating  in  the  north  at  the  Cape  of 
Pines,  on  the  south-west  side  of  the  Bay  of  Monterey,  near  the  latitude 
of  36^  degrees. 

North  of  the  San  Bruno  Mountains  is  the  Bolbones  ridge,  bordering 
the .  Bay  of  San  Francisco  on  the  east ;  and  still  farther  in  the  same 
direction  are  other  and  much  higher  lines  of  highlands,  stretching  from 
the  great  chain,  and  terminating  in  capes  on  the  Pacific. 

The  southernmost  of  these  regions  of  continental  California,  between 
the  Pacific  and  the  great  westernmost  chain  of  mountains,  resembles  the 
adjacent  portion  of  the  peninsula  in  climate ;  being  very  hot  and  dry, 
except,  during  a  short  time  in  the  winter.  Farther  north,  the  wet  season 
increases  in  length,  and  about  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco  the  rains  are 
almost  constant  from  November  to  April,  the  earth  being  moistened  dur- 
ing the  remainder  of  the  year  by  heavy  dews  and  fogs.  Snow  and  ice  are 
sometimes  seen  in  the  winter  on  the  shores  of  this  bay,  bi^t  never  farther 
south,  except  on  the  mountain-tops.  The  whole  of  California  is,  however, 
subject  to  long  droughts ;  thus  little  or  no  rain  fell  in  any  part  of  the 
country  during  1840  and  1841,  in  which  years  the  inhabitants  were 
reduced  to  the  greatest  distress. 

Among  the  valleys  in  this  part  of  California  are  many  streams,  some 
of  which  discharge  large  quantities  of  water  in  the  rainy  season ;  but  no 
river  is  known  to  flow  through  the  maritime  ridge  of  mountains  from  the 
interior  to  the  Pacific,  except  perhaps  the  Sacramento,  falling  into  the 
Bay  of  San  Francisco,  though  several  are  thus  represented  on  the  maps. 
The  valleys  thus  watered  afford  abundant  pasturage  for  cattle,  with  which 
they  are  covered :  California,  however,  contains  but  two  tracts  of  country 
capable  of  supporting  large  numbers  of  inhabitants,  which  are,  that  west 
of  Mount  San  Bernardin,  about  the  34th  degree  of  latitude,  and  that  sur- 
rounding the  Bay  of  San  Francisco  and  the  lower  part  of  the  Sacramento ; 
and  even  in  these,  artificial  irrigation  would  be  indispensable  to  insure 
success  in  agriculture. 

The  earliest  settlements  in  continental  California  were  mads  by  the 
Spaniards,  in  1769,  immediately  after  the  expulsion  of  the  Jesuits  from  the 
peninsula.  These  establishments  were  at  first  missionary  and  military ; 
the  charge  of  converting  the  natives  being  committed  to  the  Franciscans, 
while  forts  and  garrisons  were  placed  at  various  points,  for  the  occupation 
and  defence  of  the  country.  Towns  were  subsequently  laid  out  and 
settled,  and  farms  were  cultivated,  for  the  most  part  by  natives,  under  the 
direction  of  the  friarsj  and  officers.  All  these  establishments  declined 
considerably  after  the  overthrow  of  the  Spanish  power,  in  consequence  of 
waqt  of  funds,  and  the  diminution  of  the  authority  of  the  priesthood;  but, 
on  the  other  hand,  the  commerce  of  the  country  has  increased,  and  many 
vessels,  principally  from  the  United  States,  resort  to  its  ports,  bringing 
manufactured  articles,  in  return  for  which  they  receive  hides,  tallow, 
and  other  raw  productions.  In  1835,  the  number  of  missions  was  twenty- 
one,  and  of  the  towns  seven,  to  which  were  attached  about  twenty-three 
thousand  persons,  mostly  of  the  pure  aboriginal  race,  and  many  of  mixed 
breed.  Since  that  time  several  missions  have  been  abandoned,  while  the 
towns  have  increased  in  number  and  population. 

The  most  fiiouthern  settlement  on  the  Pacific  side  of  California,  and  the 


GEOGRAPHY    OF    CALIFORNIA 


m 


13  called  the 

>ast  run  the 

the  Cape  of 

the  latitude 

re,  bordering 

in  the  same 

etching  from 

rnia,  between 
resembles  the 
hot  and  dry, 
he  wet  season 
the  rains  are 
loistened  dur- 
iw  and  ice  are 
never  farther 
,a  is,  however, 
ly  part  of  the 
labitants  were 

streams,  some 
eason ;  but  no 
tains  from  the 
dling  into  the 
d  on  the  maps, 
tie,  with  which 
lets  of  country 
are,  that  west 
and  that  sur- 
Sacramento ; 
able  to  insure 

made  by  the 
Bsuits  from  the 
and  military ; 
Franciscans, 
;he  occupation 
laid  out  and 
ves,  under  the 
lents  declined 
insequence  of 
lesthood;  but, 
led,  and  many 
orts,  bringing 
hides,  tallow, 
IS  was  twenty- 
twenty-three 
lany  of  mixed 
led,  while  the 

}rnia,  and  the 


first  established  by  the  Spaniards,  is  San  Diego,  a  small  town  of  three  hun- 
dred inhabitants,  situated  about  a  mile  from  the  north  shore  of  a  bay  which 
communicates  with  t^e  ocean,  in  the  latitude  of  32  degrees  41  minutes. 
The  bay  runs  about  ten  miles  eastward  into  the  land,  being  separated  from 
the  ocean,  in  its  whole  length,  by  a  ridge  of  sand,  and  affords  entrance  to 
vessels  of  any  size,  which  may  anchor  safe  from  all  winds  within  a  mile 
of  the  northern  shore.  The  passage  leading  into  it  is  defended  by  for- 
tiBcations  which,  if  properly  armed  and  manned,  might  render  the  harbor 
completely  secure  from  all  attacks  by  sea.  The  mission  stands  about 
seven  miles  from  the  town,  in  a  valley,  through  which  a  torrent  rushes  in 
the  rainy  season.  About  sixty  miles  farther  north-west  in  San  Juan,  a  small 
place  on  an  unsafe  and  inconvenient  harbor,  in  latitude  of  33  degrees  27 
minutes;  and  somewhat  farther  in  the  same  direction  is  San  Pedro,  on  a 
bay  open  to  the  south-west  winds,  but  sheltered  from  the  north-west  The 
country  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  these  places  is  sandy  and  barren, 
yielding  little  besides  grass  for  cattle ;  in  the  interior,  however,  on  the 
north-east,  is  the  wide  tract  already  mentioned,  extending  to  Mount  San 
Bernardin,  which  is  said  to  be  of  great  fertility  wherever  it  is  properly 
irrigated,  producing  wheat,  vines,  olives,  and  fruits  of  \  irious  kinds.  In 
this  tract,  at  the  distance  of  thirty  miles  north  from  San  Pedro,  stands 
Pueblo  de  los  Angeles,  the  largest  town  in  California,  containing  a  thou- 
sand inhabitants ;  and  near  it  the  mission  of  San  Gabriel,  the  vineyards 
of  which  formerly  yielded  a  large  supply  of  good  wine. 

From  Port  San  Pedro  the  Californian  coast  runs  westward,  more  than  a 
hundred  miles,  to  Cape  Conception,  a  point  situated  in  latitude  of  34  de- 
grees 22  minutes,  as  much  dreaded  by  navigators,  on  account  of  the 
violence  and  frequency  of  the  storms  in  its  vicinity,  as  Cape  Hatteras, 
near  the  same  parallel  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  continent.  Opposite  this 
part  of  the  coast  are  the  Islands  of  Santa  Barbara,  eight  in  number,  of 
which  four,  called  Santa  Cruz,  Santa  Rosa,  Santa  Catalina,  and  San 
Clemente,  contain  from  twenty  to  fifty  square  miles  of  surface  each ;  the 
others  being  mere  rocks.  Between  the  Island  of  Santa  Cruz  and  the 
main  land  on  the  north  is  the  channel  of  Santa  Barbara,  on  the  north 
side  of  which,  the  town,  fort,  and  mission  of  Santa  Barbara  are  situated, 
in  a  sandy  plain,  stretching  from  the  coast  to  the  Santa  Barbara  range  of 
mountains.  The  harbor  is  an  open  roadstead,  sheltered  from  the  north 
and  west  winds,  which  there  prevail  from  November  to  March,  but 
affording  no  protection  against  the  south-westerly  storms,  which  are  so  vio- 
lent and  frequent  during  the  remainder  of  the  year. 

At  the  distance  of  a  hundred  miles  north  of  Cape  Conception,  the  Santa 
Barbara  Mountains  end,  as  already  said,  in  a  point  called  the  Cape  of 
Pines,  (Punta  de  Pinos,)  in  latitude  of  36  degrees  37  minutes ;  between 
which  and  another  point,  twenty-four  miles  farther  north,  called  Cape 
New  Year,  (Punta  de  Nuevo  Ano,)  is  included  the  extensive  Bay  of  Mon- 
terey.   This  bay  lies  in  an  indentation  of  the  coast,  almost  semi-circular ; 
I  its  southernmost  part  is,  however,  separated  from  the  ocean  by  the  point 
of  land  ending  at  the  Cape  of  Pines,  and  thus  forms  a  cove,  near  the 
southernmost  part  of  which  stands  the  town  of  Monterey,  or  San  Carlos 
de  Monterey,  the  seat  of  government  of  California.      The  town  is  a 
[  wretched  collection  of  mud-built  houses,  containing  about  two  hundred 
inhabitants;  the  castle,  as  it  is  termed,  and  the  fort  onthe  Cape  of  Pines, 
are  merely  mud  walls,  behind  which  are  a  few  old  guns,  all  ineffeictive. 
3 


18 


OEOORAPHY    OF    CALIFORNIA. 


The  mission,  situated  three  miles  south  of  the  town,  in  a  valley,  through 
which  runs  the  torrent  of  San  Carmelo,  embraces  extensive  buildings, 
but  is  in  a  ruinous  state,  and  nearly  deserted. 

The  surrounding  country  possesses  a  good  soil  and  a  delightful  cli- 
mate, and  might  be  rendered  very  productive  by  irrigation,  for  which  two 
small  rivers,  flowing  from  the  mountains,  offer  abundant  supplies  of  water 
at  all  times ;  it,  however,  remains  uncultivated,  and  scarcely  any  article  of 
food  is  obtained  from  it,  except  the  meat  of  the  cattle  covering  the  valleys. 
From  the  eastern  shove  of  the  bay,  a  sandy  plain  extends  eastward  to  the 
foot  of  the  San  Bruno  Mountains,  traversed  by  a  river  called  the  Buena- 
ventura, which  is  erroneously  represented,  on  some  maps,  as  flowing 
through  the  great  ridge  from  the  interior  countries.  North  of  the  bay,  at 
a  little  distance  from  Cape  New  Year,  is  the  mission  of  Santa  Cruz,  to 
which  vessels  commonly  resort  for  water  and  provisions;  and  farther  in 
the  interior,  beyond  the  San  Bruno  range,  is  the  town  of  Branciforte,  one 
of  the  largest  in  California. 

The  next  remarkable  headland  on  the  coast  north  of  the  Bay  of  Mon- 
terey is  that  called  Puntade  los  Reyes,  or  the  Cape  of  Kings,  composed  of 
high  white  clifis,  projecting  into  the  Pacific,  under  the  38th  degree  of  lat- 
itude ;  when  seen  from  the  north  or  the  south,  it  presents  the  appearance 
of  an  island,  being  connected  with  the  main  land  on  the  east  by  low 
ground.  A  few  miles  south  of  this  point  are  two  clusters  of  rocky  islets, 
called  Farellones,  immediately  east  of  which. 

The  Bay  of  San  Francisco  joins  the  Pacific  by  a  passage  or  channel 
two  miles  wide,  and  three  in  length,  under  the  parallel  of  37  degrees 
55  minutes,  nearly  in  the  same  latitude  with  the  entrance  of  Chesapeake 
Bay,  and  the  Straits  of  Gibraltar.  From  this  passage  the  bay  extends 
northward  and  southward,  surrounded  by  ranges  of  high  hills,  and  con- 
taining some  of  the  most  convenient,  beautiful,  and  secure  harbors,  on 
the  Pacific,  and,  indeed,  in  the  world. 

The  southern  branch  of  the  bay  extends  south-eastward  about  thirty  miles, 
terminating  in  that  direction  in  a  number  of  small  arms,  receiving  streams 
from  the  hills.  Its  average  breadth  is  about  twelve  miles ;  and  it  may  be 
considered  as  occupying  the  bottom,  or  northern  extremity  of  a  long 
valley,  included  between  the  San  Bruno  Mountains  on  the  west  and  the 
Bolboncs  ridge  on  the  east.  Farther  up  this  valley,  in  the  south,  are 
the  large  Lakes  of  Tuie,  which  communicate  with  each  other  and.with 
the  bay  during  the  rainy  season,  and  are  said  to  be  surrounded  by  a 
delightful  country,  containing  a  numerous  population  of  natives. 

The  northern  branch  of  the  bay  becomes  contracted,  near  the  entrance, 
into  a  strait,  beyond  which  is  a  basin,  ten  miles  in  diameter,  called  the 
Bay  of  San  Pablo.  A  second  passage,  called  the  Strait  of  Carquines, 
connects  this  basin  with  another,  containing  many  islands,  into  which 
empty  the  Sacramento,  and  one  or  two  smaller  streams.  The  Sacramento 
rises  among  the  mountains  of  the  great  westernmost  chain,  near  the  4lst 
degree  of  latitude,  and  is  said  to  receive  a  branch  flowing  through  those 
mountains  from  the  east.  Thence  it  flows,  in  a  very  tortuous  course,  about 
three  hundred  miles,  southward,  to  its  entrance  in  the  Bay  of  San  Fran- 
cisco, being  navigable  by  small  vessels  to  the  distance  of  more  than  one 
hundred  miles  from  the  bay.  The  lower  part  of  the  country  traversed  by 
it  is  an  alluvial  plain,  parts  of  which  are  prairies,  while  others  are  cov- 
ered with  forests  of  noble  trees,  principally  oaks,  and  the  whole  appears  to 


OEOORAPHT    OF    CALIFORNIA. 


19 


be  well  adapted  for  the  support  of  a  large  population.  The  other  rirers 
falling  into  this  basin  are  the  San  Joaquin  from  the  south,  and  the  Jesus 
Maria  from  the  north,  both  inconsiderable  streams. 

In  the  country  around  this  bay,  settlements  and  cultivation  have  ad- 
vanced more  than  in  any  other  part  of  California.  Near  its  southern  ex- 
tremity are  the  town  of  San  Jose  and  the  mission  of  Santa  Clara,  in  a 
delightful  region,  producing  grains  and  fruits  of  various  kinds  in  pro- 
fusion, and  affording  pasture  to  numerous  herds  of  cattle.  On  the 
northern  branch  are  the  missions  of  San  Raefael,  and  San  Francisco 
Solano ;  and  many  small  establishments  for  farming  or  grazing  have  been 
formed  at  other  points.  The  town,  mission,  and  fort  of  San  Francisco, 
are  all  situated  near  the  south  side  of  the  passage  connecting  the  bay 
with  the  Pacific,  on  a  plain  at  the  termination  of  the  San  Bruno  Moun- 
tains. The  principal  anchorage  for  vessels  is  a  cove  a  few  miles  south 
of  the  entrance-passage,  between  the  western  shore  of  the  bay  and  the 
Island  of  Yerba  Buena,  where  a  settlement  has  been  commenced  by  the 
English  and  Americans,  who  conduct  nearly  all  the  trade  of  that  part 
of  California. 

Near  Cape  de  los  Reyes,  on  the  north,  is  the  entrance  of  the  Bay  of 
Bodega,  which  thence  extends  northward  and  southward,  a  few  miles  in 
each  direction.  On  the  shore  of  the  northern  branch,  the  Russians,  in 
1812,  formed  an  establishment,  chiefly  with  the  view  of  supplying  their 
settlements  farther  north  with  grain  and  meat;  and  some  years  after- 
wards, another,  called  Ross,  was  made  by  the  same  nation,  on  the  roast 
of  the  Pacific,  thirty  miles  north  of  Bodega,  in  latitude  of  38  degrees  33 
minutes,  near  the  mouth  of  a  small  stream,  named  by  them  the  Slavinka 
Ross.  In  1838,  each  place  contained  a  stockaded  fort,  enclosing- maga- 
zines and  dwellings  for  the  officers,  and  surrounded  by  other  buildings, 
among  which  were  mills,  shops  for  smiths  and  carpenters,  and  stables  for 
cattle ;  and  in  the  neighborhood  of  Bodega,  farms  were  worked,  from 
which  several  thousand  bushels  of  wheat,  besides  pease,  and  other 
vegetables,  butter,  and  cheese,  were  annually  sent  to  the  trading  posts 
in  the  north.  These  establishments  proved  constant  sources  of  annoy- 
ance to  the  Spaniards,  and  to  their  Mexican  successors,  who  did  not, 
however,  venture  to  attempt  to  remove  them  by  force ;  in  1841,  they 
were  abandoned  by  the  Russians,  who  transferred  all  their  interests  in 
that  quarter  to  a  company  or  party  c  imposed  of  citizens  of  the  United 
States,  and  others,  equally  determined  to  resist  the  authority  of  Mexico. 

Cape  Mendocino,  which  appears  to  be  the  natural  point  of  junction  of 
'he  coasts  of  California  and  Oregon,  is  the  most  elevated  land  near  the 
Pacific  in  that  quarter.  It  consists  of  two  high  promontories,  situated 
about  ten  miles  apart,  of  which  the  southern  and  the  most  elevated  is 
situated  under  the  parallel  of  40  degrees  19  minutes,  nearly  in  the  same 
latitude  with  Sandy  Hook,  at  the  entrance  of  the  bay  of  New  York ; 
and  is  believed  to  be  the  western  termination  of  the  great  chain  of  the 
Snowy  Mountains,  which  forms  the  southern  barrier  of  the  regions 
drained  by  the  Columbia.  This  cape  was  formerly  much  dreaded  by 
the  Spanish  navigators,  on  account  of  the  storms  usually  prevailing  in 
its  vicinity  ;  but,  those  fears  having  passed  away,  the  cape  has  lost  much 
of  the  respect  with  which  it  was  regarded  by  mariners. 

The  interior  of  California,  east  of  the  mountauflMiBliM^t^Dr^er  the 
co^t,  is  imperfectly  known.     According  to^f^^^^^l^St^i?  of  the 

LIBRAR  » 


GEOORAPHT   OF    CALIFORNIA. 


>'  H 


I  , .  .>l 


Cttholic  miBiionaries  and  American  traders,  who  have  traversed  it  in 
various  directions,  the  northern  portion  is  a  wilderness  of  lofty  mountains, 
apparently  forming  a  continuous  chain,  from  the  range  which  borders  the 
Pacific  coast  to  the  Rocky  Mountains;  and  the  southern  division  is  a 
desert  of  sandy  plains,  and  rocky  hills,  and  lakes  and  marshes,  having  no 
outlet  to  the  sea.  The  heat  of  the  sun  in  the  plains  is  described,  by  all 
who  have  experienced  it,  as  most  intense;  and  from  their  accounts  it 
seems  to  be  certain  that  this  region,  with  the  exception,  perhaps,  of  the 
portion  immediately  adjacent  to  the  Colorado  River,  must  ever  remain 
uninhabited. 

The  Colorado  seems  to  be  the  only  outlet  of  the  waters  of  these  terri- 
tories. It  is  formed  near  the  41st  degree  of  latitude,  by  the  junction  of 
several  streams,  rising  among  the  Rocky  Mountains,  of  which  the  prin- 
cipal are  the  Sids-kadee,  or  Green  River,  and  the  Sandy  River  :  thence 
flowing  south-westward,  it  passes  through  a  range  of  mountains  where  its 
course  is  broken  by  numerous  ledges  of  rocks,  producing  falls  and  rapids ; 
after  which  it  receives  the  Nabaho,  the  Jaquesila,  the  Gila,  and  other  large 
streams  from  the  east,  and  enters  the  Gulf  of  California,  under  the  parallel 
of  32  degrees.  The  country  in  the  vicinity  of  this  river,  for  some  distance 
from  its  mouth,  is  flat,  and  is  over:. owed  during  the  rainy  season,  when 
the  quantity  of  water  discharged  is  very  great;  and  high  embankments 
are  thus  made  by  the  deposit  of  the  UMid  on  each  side,  similar  to  those  on 
the  Lower  Mississippi.  How  far  the'Colorado  may  be  ascended  by  vessels 
from  the  gulf,  is  not  known :  from  some  accounts,  it  seems  to  be  navigable 
for  three  or  four  hundred  miles;  while,  according  to  others,  on  which 
more  reliance  may  be  placed,  obstacles  to  the  passage  of  vessels  occur 
much  nearer  to  the  sea. 

West  of  the  Colorado,  between  the  40th  and  the  43d  degrees  of  lati- 
tude, is  a  great  collection  of  salt  water,  called  the  Utah  Lake,  probably 
the  same  which  appears  on  the  old  Spanish  maps,  under  the  names  of 
Lake  Timpanogos  and  Lake  Tegayo.  It  is  fed  by  several  streams,  the 
principal  of  which  is  the  Bear  River,  entering  on  the  north-east,  after  a 
long  and  tortuous  course  through  the  mountains.  Near  the  northern- 
most part  of  this  river  is  an  extensive  plain  of  white  calcareous  earth,  on 
the  borders  of  which  are  several  springs  of  water,  called  the  Soda  or 
Beer  Springs,  highly  charged  with  carbonic  acid  gas,  and  one,  the  temper- 
ature of  which  is  but  little  below  the  boiling  point. 

Around  the  Utah  Lake  are  other  collections  of  water,  some  salt,  and 
having  no  outlet ;  others  fresh,  and  communicating  either  with  the  great 
lake,  or  with  the  Colorado.  The  principal  of  these  is  Ashley's  Lake, 
situated  about  a  hundred  miles  south  of  the  Utah  Lake,  on  the  bunks  of 
which  a  fur-trading  establishment,  called  Fort  Ashley,  was  founded  by  the 
Americans,  in  1827 ;  but  it  has  since  been  abandoned. 

Having  thus  presented  the  most  remarkable  features  of  California, 
those  of  Oregon,  or  the  country  of  the  Columbia  next  adjoining  on  the 
north,  will  be  described. 


■  v  ^. 


traversed  it  in 
Dfty  mountains, 
ich  borders  the 
n  division  is  a 
shes,  having  no 
escribed,  by  all 
eir  accounts  it 
perhaps,  of  the 
tst  ever  remain 

s  of  these  terri- 
the  junction  of 
which  the  prin- 

River :  thence 
ntains  where  its 
alls  and  rapids ; 

and  other  large 
ider  the  parallel 
>r  some  distance 
(ly  season,  when 
h  embankments 
lilar  to  those  on 
ended  by  vessels 

to  be  navigable 
thers,  on  which 
[)f  vessels  occur 

degrees  of  lati- 
Lake,  probably 
the  names  of 
ral  streams,  the 
>rth-east,  after  a 
the  northern- 
treous  earth,  on 
ed  the  Soda  or 
one,  the  teraper- 

,  some  salt,  and 
r  with  the  great 
Ashley's  Lake, 
on  the  banks  of 
i  founded  by  the 

of  California, 
idjoining  on  the 


OREGON 


Oregon  is  the  name  usually  applied  to  the  part  of  the  western  section 
of  America,  which  is  traversed  and  principally  drained  by  the  Columbia 
—  from  the  supposition,  no  doubt  erroneous,  that  this  river  was  called 
Oregon  by  the  aborigines  in  its  vicinity. 

The  political  boundaries  of  Oregon  have  not  as  yet  been  fixed  by 
agreement  between  the  parties  claiming  possession  of  it.  The  govern- 
ment of  the  United  States  considers  them  as  embracing  the  whole  territory 
west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  from  the  latitude  of  42  degrees  to  that  of 
54  degrees  40  minutes ;  the  British  have,  however,  refused  to  acknowl- 
edge the  right  of  the  Americans  to  any  portion  north  of  the  Columbia 
River.  Leaving  this  political  question  to  be  determined  hereafter,  a  view 
will  first  be  presented  of 

THE  COUNTRY  OF  THE  COLUMBIA. 

This  country  extends  on  the  Pacific  from  the  vicinity  of  Cape  Mendo- 
cino, five  hundred  miles,  to  Cape  Flattery,  at  the  entrance  of  the  Strait  of 
Fnca ;  from  the  eastern  extremity  of  which  strait,  distant  one  hundred 
miles  from  the  ocean,  a  range  of  mountains  stretches  north-eastward, 
about  four  hundred  miles,  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  near  the  54th  degree 
of  latitude,  separating  the  waters  of  the  Columbia  from  those  of  Frazer's 
River.  The  Rocky  Mountains  form  the  eastern  boundary  of  the  Colum- 
bia regions,  for  about  twelve  hundred  miles,  from  the  54th  to  the  42d 
parallels ;  and  those  regions  are  separated  from  California,  on  the  south, 
by  the  Snowy  Mountains,  which  appear  to  extend  continuously  from 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  nearly  in  the  course  of  the  41st  parallel,  about 
seven  hundred  miles  westward,  to  the  vicinity  of  the  Pacific.  It  is  jiot  easy 
to  define  these  boundaries  more  exactly,  as  the  directions  of  the  mountain 
chains  are  not  accurately  ascertained.  The  territory  included  within  these 
limits,  and  drained  almost  entirely  by  the  Columbia,  is  not  less  than  four 
hundred  thousand  square  miles  in  superficial  extent ;  which  is  more  than 
double  that  of  France,  and  nearly  half  that  of  all  the  states  of  the  Federal 
Union.  Its  southernmost  points  are  in  the  same  latitudes  with  Boston 
and  with  Florence;  while  its  northernmost  correspond  with  the  north- 
ern extremities  of  Newfoundland,  and  with  the  southern  shores  of  the 
Baltic  Sea. 

The  Pacific  coast  of  this  territory  extends  in  a  line  nearly  due  notth 
from  Cape  Mendocino  to  Cape  Flattery;  in  which  whole  distance  'here  is 
but  one  harbor,  or  place  of  refuge  for  ships,  namely,  the  mouth  of  the 
Columbia  River,  near  the  46th  degree  of  latitude,  and  that  harbor  is  very 
frequently  inaccessible. 

The  shofes  south  of  the  Columbia  are  most  perilous  to  navigators  at  all 
times ;  as  they  are  every  where  steep  and  rocky,  and  bordered  by  shoals 


I  I 


22 


OEOORAPHT    or   OREGON. 


i!l^ 


I  Ml 


i'l'l 


liiiil 


and  reefs,  on  which  the  waves  of  the  Pacific  are  driven  with  fury  by  the 
prevailing  north-west  winds.  Vessels  not  drawing  more  than  eight  feet 
may,  however,  enter  the  Umqua,  a  small  stream  falling  into  the  Pacific, 
in  the  latitude  of  42  degrees  51  minutes,  immediately  north  of  a  remark- 
able  promontory  called  Cape  Orford,  probably  the  Cape  Blanco  of  the  old 
Spanish  navigators.  Small  vessels  may  also  find  anchorage  in  a  cove  or 
recess  of  the  coast,  named  by  the  Spaniards  Port  Trinidad,  under  the 
parallel  of  41  degrees  3  minutes,  about  forty  miles  north  of  Cape  Mendo- 
cino, and  in  some  other  spots ;  but  no  place  on  this  coast  can  be  said  to 
offer  protection  to  vessels  against  winds  or  waves. 

North  of  the  Columbia,  the  coast  is  less  beset  by  dangers ;  and  it  offers, 
immediately  under  the  47th  parallel,  one  good  port,  for  small  vessels, 
which  was  discovered  in  May,  1792,  by  Captain  Gray,  of  Boston,  and 
named  by  him  Bulfinch's  Harbor,  though  it  is  more  commonly  called 
Gray's  Harbor,  and  is  frequently  represented  on  English  maps  as  Whid- 
b'ey's  Bay.  The  only  other  spot  worthy  of  particular  notice  on  this  part 
of  the  coast  is  Destructio.i  Island,  near  the  continent,  in  latitude  of  47^ 
degrees,  so  called  by  the  captain  of  an  Austrian  trading  ship  in  1787, 
in  consequence  of  the  murder  of  some  of  his  men  by  the  natives  of 
the  adjacent  country. 

The  Strait  of  Fuca  is  an  arm  of  the  sea  separating  a  great  island  from 
the  continent  on  the  south  and  east,  to  which  much  interest  was  for  some 
time  attached,  from  the  supposition  that  it  might  be  a  channel  connecting 
the  Atlantic  with  the  Pacific  north  of  America.  It  extends  from  the 
ocean  eastward  about  one  hundred  miles,  varying  in  breadth  from  ten  to 
thirty  miles,  between  the  48th  and  the  49th  parallels  of  latitude ;  thence 
it  turns  to  the  north-west,  in  which  direction  it  runs,  first  expanding  into 
a  long,  wide  bay,  and  then  contracting  into  narrow  and  intricate  passages 
among  islands,  three  hundred  miles  farther,  to  its  reunion  with  the  Pacific, 
under  the  51st  parallel.  From  its  south-eastern  extremity,  a  great  gulf, 
called  Admiralty  Inlet,  stretches  southward  into  the  continent  more  than 
one  hundred  miles,  dividing  into  many  branches,  of  which  the  principal 
are  Hood's  Canal,  on  the  west,  and  Puget's  Sound,  the  southernmost, 
extending  nearly  to  the  47th  parallel.  "This  inlet  possesses  many  excel- 
lent harbors ;  and  the  country  adjacent,  being  delightful  and  productive^ 
will,  there  is  every  reason  to  believe,  in  time  become  valuable,  agricul- 
turally, as  well  as  commercially.  There  are  many  other  harbors  on  the 
Strait  of  Fuca,  of  which  the  principal  are  Port  Discovery,  near  the 
entrance  of  Admiralty  Inlet,  said  by  Vancouver  to  be  one  of  the  best  in 
the  Pacific,  and  Poverty  Cove,  called  Port  Nuiiez  Gaona  by  the  Span- 
iards, situated  a  few  miles  east  of  Cape  Flattery.  That  cape,  so  named 
by  Cook,  is  a  conspicuous  promontory  in  the  latitude  of  48  degrees  27 
minutes,  near  which  is  a  large  rock,  called  Tatooche's  Island,  united  to  the 
promontory  by  a  rocky  ledge,  at  times  partially  covered  by  water.  The 
shore  between  the  cape  and  Admiralty  Inlet  is  composed  of  sandy  cliffs 
.overhanging  a  beach  of  sand  and  stones ;  from  it  the  land  gradually  rises 
to  a  chain  of  mountains,  stretching  southwardly  along  the  Pacific  to  the 
vicinity  of  the  Columbia,  the  highest  point  of  which  received,  in  178S,  the 
name  of  Mount  Olympus. 

The  interior  of  this  part  of  America  is,  as  already  said,  traversed  by 
many  great  ranges  of  mountains,  running  generally  almost  parallel  with 
each  other,  and  with  the  coast :  before  describing  them,  however,  it  will 


GEOQRAPHY    OF    OREGON. 


be  convenient  to  present  a  general  view  of  the  Columbia  River  and  its 
branches. 

The  Columbia  enters  the  Pacific  Ocean  between  two  points  of  land, 
seven  miles  apart  —  Cape  Disappointment  on  the  north,  and  Cape  Adams 
on  the  south,  of  which  the  former  is  in  the  latitude  of  40  degrees  19 
minutes,  (corresponding  nearly  with  Quebec,  in  Canada,  and  Geneva,  in 
'  vitzerland,)  and  in  longitude  of  47  degrees  west  from  Washington,  or 
124  degrees  west  from  Greenwich.  The  main  river  is  formed,  at  the 
distance  of  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles  from  its  mouth,  by  the  union  of 
two  large  streams,  one  from  the  north,  which  is  usually  considered  as  the 
principal  branch,  and  the  other,  called  the  Sahaptin,  or  Snake,  or  Lewis'f« 
River,  from  the  south-east.  These  two  great  confluents  receive,  in  their 
course,  many  other  streams,  and  they  thus  collect  together  all  the  waters 
flowing  from  the  western  sides  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  between  the  42d 
and  the  54th  parallels  of  latitude. 

The  northern  branch  of  the  Columbia  rises  in  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
near  the  53d  degree  of  latitude.  One  of  its  head-waters,  the  Canoe 
River,  runs  from  a  small  lake,  situated  in  a  remarkable  clefl  of  the  great 
chain,  called  the  Punch  Bowl,  at  the  distance  of  only  a  few  feet  from 
another  lake,  whence  flows  the  westernmost  stream  of  the  Athabasca 
River,  a  tributary  to  the  Mackenzie,  emptying  into  the  Arctic  Sea.  This 
clefl  appears  to  be  the  only  practicable  pass  in  the  mountains  north  of  the 
49th  degree  of  latitude,  and  through  it  is  conducted  all  the  trade  of 
British  subjects  between  the  territories  on  either  side  of  the  ridge.  It  is 
described,  by  those  who  have  visited  it,  as  presenting  scenes  of  the  most 
terrific  grandeur,  being  overhung  by  the  highest  peaks  in  the  dividing 
range,  of  which  one,  called  Mount  Brown,  is  not  less  than  sixteen  thousand 
feet,  and  another,  Mount  Hooker,  exceeds  fifteen  thousand  feet,  above  the 
ocean  level. 

At  a  place  called  Boat  Encampment,  near  the  52d  degree  of  latitude, 
Canoe  River  joins  two  other  streams,  the  one  from  the  north,  the  other, 
the  largest  of  the  three,  running  along  the  base  of  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
from  the  south.  The  river  thus  formed,  considered  as  the  main  Colum- 
bia, takes  its  course  nearly  due  south,  through  defiles,  between  lofty 
mountains,  being  generally  a  third  of  a  mile  in  width,  but,  in  some 
places,  spreading  out  into  broad  lakes,for  about  three  hundred  miles,  to  the 
latitude  of  48J  degrees,  where  it  receives  the  Flatbow  or  M'Gillivray's 
River,  a  large  branch,  flowing,  also,  from  the  Rocky  Mountains  on  the 
east.  A  little  farther  south,  the  northern  branch  unites  with  the  Clarke 
or  Flath«;ad  River  —  scarcely  inferior,  in  the  quantity  of  water  supplied,  to 
the  other.  The  sources  of  the  Clarke  are  situated  in  the  dividing  range, 
near  those  of  the  Missouri  and  the  Yellowstone,  whence  it  runs  north- 
ward, along  the  base  of  the  mountains,  and  then  westward,  forming,  under 
the  48th  parallel,  an  extensive  sheet  of  water,  called  the  KuUerspelmLake, 
surrounded  by  rich  tracts  of  land,  and  lofty  mountains,  covered  with  noble 
trees;  from  this  lake  the  river  issues,  a  large  and  rapid  stream,  and,  after 
running  about  seventy  miles  westward,  it  falls  into  the  north  branch  of 
the  Columbia,  over  a  ledge  of  rocks.  From  the  point  of  union  of  th<?se 
two  rivers,  the  Columbia  turns  towards  the  west,  and  rushes  through  a 
ridge  of  mountains,  where  it  forms  a  cataract  called  the  Chaudiere  or 
Kettle  Falls.  Continuing  in  the  same  direction  eighty  miles,  between  the 
48th  and  the  49th  parallels,  it  receives,  in  succession,  the  Sp(    ■'n  from 


24 


acoanAPiiY  or  orroon. 


tho  south,  and  the  Okinngan  irom  thn  north,  and,  from  tho  mouth  of  the 
latter,  it  purnucN  n  Houthwnrd  cniifHO  for  one  hundred  nnd  nixty  miles,  to 
its  junction  with  the  great  Houtiu^rn  branch,  near  tho  47th  degree  of 
latitude. 

Of  the  Snhaptin,  or  Lewis,  or  Snnke  River,  tho  great  southern  branch 
of  the  Columbia,  the  fnrthermoHt  sourcuH  are  situated  in  the  deep  valleys 
or  holes  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  near  the  4'id  degree  of  latitude,  within 
short  distances  of  those  of  the  Yellowstone,  the  Platte,  and  the  Colorado. 
The  most  eastern  of  these  head-watcrn,  considered  as  the  main  river, 
issues  from  Pierre's  Hole,  between  tho  Rocky  Mountains  and  a  parallel 
range  called  the  Tetons,  from  three  remarkable  peaks,  resembling  teats, 
which  rise  to  a  great  height  almve  the  others.  Running  westward,  this 
stream  unites  siiccesNivcly  with  Henry's  Fork  from  the  north,  and  the 
Portneuf  from  the  south.  Some  distance  below  its  junction  with  the 
latter,  the  Lewis  enters  the  delilo  between  the  Blue  Mountains  on  the 
west,  and  another  rocky  chain,  called  the  Salmon  River  Mountains,  on  the 
east,  and  takes  its  course  north-westward,  for  about  six  hundred  miles,  to 
its  union  with  the  northern  branch,  receiving  many  large  streams  from 
each  side.  The  principal  of  these  influent  streams  are  the  Malade  or 
Sickly  River,  the  Boise  or  Reed's  River,  the  Salmon  River,  and  the 
Kooskooskee,  from  the  east,  and  the  Malheur  and  Powder  River,  from  the 
Blue  Mountains,  on  tho  west. 

Of  these  two  great  branches  of  the  Columbia,  and  the  streams  which 
fall  into  them,  scarcely  any  portion  is  navigable  by  the  smallest  vessels  for 
more  than  thirty  or  forty  miles  continuously.  The  northern  branch  is 
much  used  by  the  British  traders  for  tho  conveyance  of  their  furs  and 
merchandise,  by  means  of  light  canoes,  which,  us  well  as  their  cargoes, 
are  carried  by  the  boatmen  around  the  fills  and  rnpids  so  frequently  inter- 
rupting  their  voyage.  The  Lewis  River  nnd  its  streams  offer  'cw  ad- 
vantages in  this  way  ;  as  they  nearly  all  rush,  in  their  whole  course,  through 
deep  and  narrow  chasms,  between  perpendicular  rocks,  against  which  a 
boat  would  be  momentarily  in  danger  of  being  dashed  by  the  current. 

From  the  point  of  junction  of  these  two  great  brunches,  the  course  of 
the  Columbia  is  generally  westward  to  the  ocean.  A  little  below  that 
point,  it  receives  the  Walla-Walla,  nnd  then,  in  succession,  the  Umatalla, 
John  Day's  River,  and  the  Chutes  or  Falls  River,  all  flowing  from  the 
south,  and  some  others,  of  less  size,  from  the  north.  Near  the  mouth  of 
the  Falls  River,  eighty  miles  below  the  Walla-Walla,  are  situated  the 
Falls,  or  Chutes,  as  they  are  called,  of  the  Columbia,  where  the  great 
stream  enters  a  gap  in  the  Far-West  range  of  mountains.  Four  miles 
farther  down  are  the  Dalks,  or  rapids  formed  by  the  passage  of  the 
waters  between  vast  masses  of  rock ;  and  thirty  miles  below  these  are  the 
Cascades,  a  series  of  falls  and  rapids  extending  more  than  half  a  mile, 
at  the  foot  of  which  the  tides  are  observable  at  the  distance  of  a  hundred 
and  twenty  miles  from  the  Pacific. 

A  few  miles  below  the  Cascades,  a  large  river,  called  the  Willamet, 
(the  Multonomah  of  Lewis  and  Clarke,)  enters  the  Columbia  from  the 
south,  by  two  branches,  between  which  is  an  extensive  island,  named 
Wappatoo  Island,  from  an  edible  root,  so  called,  found  growing  in  abun- 
dance upon  it.  Twenty-five  miles  from  the  mouth  of  this  river  are  its 
falls,  where  all  its  waters  are  precipita'ed  over  a  ledge  of  rocks  more 
than  forty  feet  in  height.     Beyond  this  point,  the  Willamet  has  been 


ocoauAPiiv  or  oregon. 


96 


month  of  the 
ixty  milns,  to 
th  dogreo  uf 

them  jranch 
deep  vnllcys 
itudc,  within 
ho  Colorado. 
I  innin  river, 
id  n  parallel 
mhling  teats, 
CHtward,  this 
irth,  and  the 
ion  with  the 
itains  on  the 
itainH,  on  the 
Ired  miles,  to 
Dtrcamii  from 
e  Malade  or 
ver,  and  the 
ver,  from  the 

ireams  which 

8t  vessels  for 

rn  branch  is 

leir  furs  and 

heir  cargoes, 

^uently  inter- 

ffer   "ew  ad- 

irse,  through 

nst  which  a 

current. 

course  of 

below  that 

le  Umatalla, 

)g  from  the 

ic  mouth  of 

situated  the 

e  the  great 

Four  miles 

mge  of  the 

icse  are  the 

lalf  a  mile, 

a  hundred 

Willamet, 
a  from  the 
nd,  named 
ig  in  abun- 
ver  are  its 
ocks  more 

has  been 


traced  about  two  hundred  miles,  in  a  tortuous  course,  through  •  narrow 
but  generally  fertile  valley,  to  its  sources  in  the  Far-West  chain  of 
mountains,  near  the  4:i<l  (Ivgrce  uf  latitude.  In  this  valley  were  formed 
the  carlie.<<t  agricultural  settlements  by  citizens  of  the  United  States  west 
of  the  liucky  Mouataios;  and,  from  all  accounts,  it  appears  to  piresent 
greater  advantages  of  soil  and  climate  than  any  other  part  of  the  country 
drained  by  tlic  Columbia. 

DcHceuding  the  Columbia  forty  miles  from  the  lower  mouth  ofthe  Wil- 
lamet, we  find  a  small  stream,  called  the  Cowelitz,  entering  it  from  the 
north ;  and,  thirty  miles  lower  down,  the  great  river,  whicn  is  nowhere 
above  more  than  a  mile  wide,  expands  to  the  breadth  of  four,  and,  in 
some  places,  of  seven,  miles,  before  mingling  its  waters  with  those  of  the 
Pucitic ;  it,  however,  prenerves  its  character  as  a  river,  being  rapid  in  ite 
current,  and  perfectly  fresh  and  potable,  to  within  a  league  of  the  ocean, 
except  during  very  dry  seasons  and  the  prevalence  of  violent  westerly 
winds. 

The  Columbia  may  generally  be  ascended,  by  ships  of  three  or  four 
hundred  tons,  nearly  to  the  foot  of  its  cascades:  the  navigation,  especially 
of  the  lower  part,  is,  however,  at  all  times,  difficult  and  dangerous,  in 
consequence  of  the  number  and  the  variability  of  the  shoals;  and  it  is 
only  in  fine  weather  that  vessels  can  with  safety  enter,  or  leave  its  mouth, 
which  is  guarded  by  a  line  of  breakers,  extending  across  from  each  of  the 
capes. 

The  other  rivers  which  drain  the  parts  of  this  territory  near  the  sea 
are  numerous,  but  generally  small,  the  majority  being  merely  brooks, 
which  disappear  during  the  dry  season.  The  Umqua,  near  the  43d  degree 
of  latitude,  and  the  Chekelis,  which  empties  into  Buliinch's  Harbor,  are 
the  principal  of  those  streams ;  but  neither  of  them  offers  any  facilities  for 
commercial  communication. 

Of  the  chains  of  mountains  traversing  Oregon  from  north  to  south, 
the  most  remarkable  is  the  westernmost,  for  which  the  name  of  Far-West 
Mountains  has  been  here  proposed,  running  northward  from  California 
nt  the  distance  of  eighty  or  a  hundred  miles  from  the  Pacific  coast. 
Under  the  49th  parallel,  where  the  base  of  the  chain  is  washed  by  the 
easternmost  waters  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  it  is  divided  into  three 
distinct  ridges,  one  of  which  stretches  north-east,  to  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, separating  the  waters  of  the  Columbia  from  those  of  Fraser's 
River ;  another  overhangs  the  sea-coast  north-westward ;  and  the  islands  of 
the  North-West  Archipelago,  which  mask  the  shore  of  the  continent  from  the 
49th  to  the  58th  parallels,  may  be  considered  as  a  third  ridge,  extending 
through  the  sea.  The  principal  peaks  of  this  chain,  in  Oregon,  are  Mount 
Baker,  near  the  49th  parallel.  Mount  Rainier,  under  the  47th,  and  Mount 
St.  Helen's,  the  highest  ef  the  range,  which  rises,  probably,  not  less  than 
fifteen  thousand  feet  above  the  ocean  level,  due  east  of  the  mouth  of  the 
Columbia.  South  of  that  river  are  Mount  Hood,  near  the  45th  parallel ; 
Mount  Jefferson,  so  named  by  Lewis  and  Clarke,  under  the  44th ;  Mount 
Shasty,  near  the  43d ;  and  Mount  Jackson,  a  stupendous  pinnacle,  in  the 
latitude  of  41  degrees  40  minutes,  which  has  been  also  called  Mount  Pitt 
by  the  British  traders.  Some  of  these  peaks  are  visible  from  the  ocean, 
particularly  Mount  St.  Helen's,  which  serves  as  a  mank  for  vessels  entering 
the  Columbia ;  when  seen  from  the  highlands  farther  east,  thev  present 
one  of  the  grandest  spectacles  in  nature.  This  chain  19  entirely  of  vol- 
4 


86 


aROORAPHV    or    OREGON. 


I     lil 


oanio  formation ;  and  it  muni  contain  uctivo  volcanoes,  aa  there  are  no 
other  means  of  accounting  for  the  Hhowors  of  ashes  which  occasionally 
fail  in  many  parts  of  Oregon,  particularly  in  the  vicinity  of  Mount  St. 
Helen's.     The  latest  of  these  supposed  eruptions  took  place  in  1834. 

The  country  between  the  Pacific  coast  and  this  westernmost  chain 
consists,  like  the  part  of  California  similarly  situated,  of  ranges  of  lower 
mountains,  separated  by  narrow  valleys,  generally  running  parallel  to  the 
great  chain,  and  to  the  coast.  Its  supcrhcial  extent  may  be  estimated  at 
about  forty-five  thounand  square  miles,*  of  which  a  small  proportion  only, 
not  exceeding  an  eighth,  is  lit  for  cultivation.  The  climate,  like  that  of 
California,  is  warm  and  dry  in  summer ;  very  little  rain  tailing  between 
April  and  November,  though  it  is  violent,  and  almost  constant,  during  the 
remainder  of  the  year.  Snow  is  rarely  seen  in  the  valleys,  in  which  the 
ground  frequently  continues  soil  and  unfrozen  throughout  the  winter. 
The  soil,  in  some  of  these  valleys,  is  said  to  be  excellent  for  wheat,  rye, 
oats,  peas,  potatoes,  and  apples ;  fifteen  bushels  of  wheat  being  sometimes 
yielded  by  a  single  acre.  Indian  corn,  which  requires  both  heat  and 
moisture,  does  not  succeed  in  any  part  of  Oregon.  Hogs  live  and  mul- 
tiply in  the  woods,  where  an  abundance  of  acorna  is  to  be  found ;  the 
cattle  also  increase,  and  it  is  not  generally  necessary  for  them  to  be 
housed  or  fed  in  the  winter.  The  hills  and  the  flanks  of  the  great  moun- 
tains are  covered  with  timber,  which  grows  to  an  immense  size.  A  fir, 
near  Astoria,  measured  forty-six  feet  in  circumference  at  ten  feet  from  the 
earth ;  the  length  of  its  trunk,  before  giving  off  a  branch,  was  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty-three  feet,  and  its  whole  height  not  less  than  three  hundred 
feet.  Another  tree,  of  the  same  species,  on  the  banks  of  the  Umqua 
River,  is  fifty-seven  feet  in  girth  of  trunk,  and  two  hundred  and  sixteen 
feet  in  length  below  its  branches.  •'  Prime  sound  pines,"  says  Cox, 
"  from  two  hundred  to  two  hundred  and  eighty  feet  in  height,  and  from 
twenty  to  forty  feet  in  circumference,  are  by  no  means  uncommon."  The 
land  on  which  these  large  trees  grow  is  good ;  but  the  labor  of  clearing 
it  would  be  such  as  to  prevent  any  one  from  undertaking  the  task,  until 
all  the  other  spots,  capable  of  cultivation,  should  have  been  occupied. 
From  the  peculiarities  of  climate  above  mentioned,  it  is  probable  that  this 
country  cannot  be  rendered  very  productive  without  artificial  irrigation, 
which  appears  to  be  practicable  only  in  a  few  places ;  and  that  conse- 
quently the  progress  of  settlement  in  it  will  be  much  slower  than  in  the 
Atlantic  regions  of  the  continent,  where  this  want  of  moisture  does  nof 
exist. 

About  one  hundred  and  fifty  miles  east  of  the  Far-West  Mountains  is 
another  chain,  called  the  Blue  Mountains,  stretching  from  the  Simwy 
Mountains  northward  to  the  47th  degree  of  latitude,  and  forming  the 

*  The  %rait  of  Fuca,  which  bounds  this  region  on  the  north,  is  in  latitude  of  48^ 
degrees ;  and,  assuming  the  42d  parallel  as  the  southern  limit  of  the  territory,  its 
extreme  Icnjgth  is  6J  degrees,  or  less  than  four  hundred  and  fifty  miles  English.  Its 
breadth — that  is,  the  distance  between  the  Pacific  shore  and  the  great  chain  of 
mountains  which  forms  the  eastern  boundary  of  this  region  —  does  not  average 
a  hundred  miles ;  and,  by  multiplying  these  two  numbers,  forty-five  thousand  square 
English  miles  appears  as  the  superficial  extent  of  the  westernmost  region  of  Oregon. 
It  has,  however,  been  gravely  asserted  and  repeated  on  the  floor  of  tlie  Congress  of 
the  United  StateSj  that  the  valley  of  the  Willamet,  which  is  but  an  inconsiderable 
uurtion  of  this  region,  contains  not  less  than  sixty  thousand  square  miles  of  the  finest 
imnd  ;  and  many  other  assertions,  equally  extravagant,  have  been  made,  and  are  be- 
lieved, respecting  the  vast  extent  of  lana  in  the  country  of  the  Columbia,  superior  in 
quality  to  any  in  the  United  Stales. 


OROGRAPHY    or    OREGON. 


27 


there  are  no 

occasionally 
if  Mount  St. 
in  1834. 
rnmost  chain 
[iges  of  lower 
>arallel  to  the 

estimated  at 
tportiun  only, 
),  like  that  of 
ling  between 
U,  during  the 
in  which  the 

the  winter. 
)r  wheat,  rye, 
ng  sometimes 
loth  heat  and 
live  and  mul- 
>e  found ;  the 
r  them  to  be 
)  great  moun- 

size.  A  iir, 
i  feet  from  the 
was  one  hun- 
hree  hundred 
f  the  Umqua 
!d  and  sixteen 
,"  says  Cox, 
ht,  and  from 
imon."  The 
of  clearing 
he  task,  until 
!en  occupied, 
able  that  this 
ial  irrigation, 
d  that  conse- 

than  in  the 
ture  does  not 

Mountains  i$ 

n  the  Snowy 

forming  the 

latitude  of  48^ 
u>  territory,  its 
s  English.  Its 
great  chain  of 
s  not  average 
housand  square 
[ion  of  Oregon, 
le  Congress  of 
inconsiderable 
les  of  the  fittest 
de,  and  are  be- 
bia,  superior  in 


western  wall  of  the  valley  of  the  Lewis,  the  great  southern  branch  of  the 
Columbia.      North  of  the  47th  degree  are  other  ridges,  which  appear 
to  bo  contiriuntions  of  the  Blue  Mountains;  but  they  are  less  defined, 
and  arc  dir*tinguishcd  by  other  names.     The  region  between  the  Blue  and 
the  Far-West  Mountains  embraces  several  tracts  of  country  comparatively 
level,  and  .tome  valleys  wider  than  those  of  the  Paciflc  region  ;  the  soil  is, 
however,  Iohh  productive,  and  the  climate  less  favorable  for  agriculture, 
than  in  the  places  similarly  situated  nearer  the  ocean.     The  most  extcn* 
sive  valleys  are  those  traversed  by  the  streams  (lowing  into  the  Columbia 
from  the  south,  between  the  Far-West  range  and  the  Blue  Mountains, 
particularly  the  Walla-Walla,  and  the  Falls  or  Chutes  Rivers:  the  plains, 
as  they  are  called,  though  they  arc  rather  tracts  of  undulating  country, 
are  on  both  sides  of  the  northern  branch  of  the  Columbia,  between  the 
4({th  and  the  40th  parallels  of  latitude.     The  surface  of  the  plains  consists 
generally  of  a  yellow,  sandy  clay,  covered  with  grass,  small  shrubs,  and 
prickly  pears ;  in  the  valleys  further  south,  the  soil  is  somewhat  better, 
containinir  less  of  sund  and  more  of  vegetable  mould,  and  they  give  sup- 
port to  a  few  trees,  chieHy  sumach,  cotton-wood,  and  other  soil  and  use- 
less woods.     The  climate  of  this  whole  region  is  more  dry  than  that  of 
the  country  nearer  the  Pacilic  ;  the  days  are  warm,  and  the  nights  cool ; 
but  the  want  of  moisture  in  the  air  prevents  the  contrast  of  temperature 
from  being  injurious  to  health,  and  the  country  is  represented,  by  all  who 
have  had  the  opportunity  of  judging  by  experience,  as  being  of  extraordi- 
nary salubrity.     The  wet  season  extends  from  November  to  April;  but 
the  rains  are  neither  frequent  nor  abundant,  and  they  never  occur  at  any 
other  period  of  the  year.     In  the  southern  valleys  there  is  little  snow; 
farther  north  it  is  more  common,  but  it  seldom  lies  long,  except  on  the 
heights.     Under  such  circumstances,  it  will  be  seen  that  little  encourage- 
ment is  offered  for  the  cultivation  of  this  part  of  Oregon.     On  the  other 
hand,  the   plains   and   valleys  appear  to   be  admirably   adapted  for  tne 
support  of  cattle,  as  grass,  either  green  or  dry,  may  be  found  at  all  times, 
within  a  short  distance,  on  the  bottom  lands  or  on  the  hill  sides.     The 
want  of  wood  must  also  prove  a  great  obstacle  to  settlement,  as  this  indis- 
pensable article  can  only  be  procured  from  a  great  distance  up  the  north 
branch  of  the  Columbia,  or  from  the  Pacific  region,   with  which  the 
|);i.ssages  of  communication  through  the  mountains  are  few  and  difficult. 
The  country  farther  ea^t,  between  the  Blue  Mountains  and  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  appears  to  be.  except  in  a  very  few  small  detached  spots,  ab- 
solutely uninhabitable  by  those  who  depend  on  agriculture  for  subsistence. 
It  is,  in  fact,  a  collection  of  bare,  rocky  mountain  chains,  separated  by 
deep  gorges,  through  whicii  flow  the  streams  produced  by  the  melting  of 
the  snows  on  -.he  summits  :  for  in  the  lower  grounds  rain  seldom  falls  at 
any  time.     On  the  borders  of  the  Lewis,  and  of  some  of  the  streams 
fiilling  into  it,  are  valleys  and  >rairies,  producing  grass  for  cattle ;  but  all 
the  attempts  in  cultivate  the  esculent  vegetables  have  failed,  chiefly,  as  it 
is  believed,  fr(»rn  the  preat  difference  in  the  temperature  between  the  day 
and  the  succeeding  n  ^ht,  especially  in  the  summer,  which  is  commonly 
not  le.sH  than  thirty,  and  often  exceeds  fifly,  degrees  of  Fahrenheit's  ther- 
mometer.*    North  of  the  48th  parallel,  the  climate  is  less  dry,  and  the 

*  The  thermometpr  was  sren  by  Wyeth,  at  Fort  Hall,  on  the  Lewis,  near  the  43d 
parallel  of  latitude,  at  the  freezing  point  in  the  morning,  and  at  ninety-two  degrees  of 
Fahrenheit  in  the  middle  of  a  day  in  August.  Frosts  occur  at  this  place  in  nearly 
every  month  in  the  year. 


.1; 


38 


OEOQRAPHT    OF    OHEGON. 


i' 


•$m 


1  ''■!■      " 


bases  of  the  mouotains  are  covered  with  wood ;  but  the  temperature  ia 
moat  places  is  too  cold  for  the  production  of  any  of  the  useful  grains  or 
garden  vegetables.  The  parts  of  this  region  which  appear  to  be  the  most 
favorable  for  agriculture,  are  those  adjacent  to  the  Clarke  River,  and 
particularly  around  the  Kullerspelm,  or  Flathead  Lake,  where  the  hills 
are  well  clothed  with  oaks,  elms,  cedars,  and  pines,  and  the  soil  of  the 
low  grounds  is  of  good  quality. 

New  Caledonia  is  the  name  given  by  the  British  traders  to  the  country 
extending  north  and  west  of  the  Columbia  regions,  to  the  56th  parallel  of 
latitude.  It  is  a  sterile  land  of  snow-clad  mountains,  tortuous  rivers,  and 
lakes  frozen  over  nearly  two  thirds  of  the  year ;  presenting  scarcely  a 
single  spot  in  which  any  of  the  vegetables  used  as  food  by  civilized  people 
can  be  produced.  The  waters,  like  those  of  the  country  farther  south, 
however,  abound  in  fish,  which,  with  berries,  form  the  principal  support 
of  the  native  population.  The  largest  lakes  are  the  Babine,  communi- 
cating with  the  ocean  by  Simpson's  River,  and  Stuart's,  Quesnel's,  and 
Eraser's  Lakes,  the  outlet  of  all  which  is  Fraser's  River,  a  long  but  shal- 
low stream,  emptying  into  the  Strait  of  Fuca  at  its  eastern  extremity. 
The  coast  of  this  country  is  very  irregular  in  outline,  being  penetrated  by 
many  bays  and  inlets,  running  up  from  the  sea  among  the  mountains 
which  border  that  side  of  the  continent ;  between  it  and  the  open  Pa- 
cific lie  the  islands  of  the  North-West  Archipelago,  which  will  be  here 
described. 

The  North-West  Archipeirgo  is  a  remarkable  collection  of  islands, 
situated  in,  and  nearly  filling  a  recess  of  the  American  coast,  about  seven 
hundred  miles  in  length,  ai;d  eighty  or  one  hundred  in  breadth,  which  ex- 
tends between  the  48th  atid  the  5dth  parallels  of  latitude;  that  is  to  say, 
between  the  same  parallels  as  Great  Britain.  These  islands  are  in  number 
many  thousands,  presenting'  together  a  surface  of  not  less  than  fifty  thou- 
sand square  miles ;  they  are,  however,  with  the  exception  of  nine  or  ten, 
very  small,  and  the  greater  part  of  them  are  mere  rocks.  The  largest 
islands  are  all  traversed,  in  their  longest  direction,  from  south-east  to  north- 
west, by  mountain  ridges;  and  the  whole  archipelago  may  be  considered 
as  a  range  connecting  the  Far-West  mountains  of  Oregon  with  the  great 
chain  farther  north,  of  which  Mounts  Fairweather  and  St.  Elias  are  the 
most  prominent  peaks. 

The  coasts  of  these  islands  are,  like  those  of  the  continent  in  their 
vicinity,  very  irregular  in  outline,  including  numerous  bays  and  inlets ; 
and  the  channels  between  them  are,  with  one  exception,  narrow  and 
tortuous.  These  coasts  and  channels  were  minutely  surveyed,  during  the 
period  from  1785  to  1795,  by  navigators  of  various  nations,  chiefly  with 
the  view  of  discovering  some  northern  passage  of  communication  between 
the  Pacific  and  the  Atlantic  ;  and  the  true  geographical  character  of  the 
islands,  which  had  previously  been  regarded  as  parts  of  the  continent, 
was  thus  ascertained.  The  British,  under  Vancouver,  made  the  most 
complete  examination  of  the  archipelago,  and  bestowed  on  the  islands, 
channels,  capes,  and  bays,  a  number  of  names,  nearly  all  drawn  from  the 
lists  of  the  British  royal  family,  peerage,  and  parliament,  some  of  which 
still  retain  their  places  on  maps,  though  few  of  them  will  probably  be  used 
when  those  parts  of  America  are  occupied  by  a  civilized  population. 

Of  the  interior  of  the  islands  little  is  known ;  but  from  all  accounts, 
they  are  generally  rocky  and  barren.    The  climate  of  the  southernmost 


GEOGRAPHY    Or    OREGON. 


29 


islands  appears  to  resemble  that  of  the  western  region  of  Oregon,  except 
that  it  is  less  dry  in  summer ;  farther  north,  the  rainy  season  increases  in 
length,  but  the  acco.-npanying  increase  in  the  coldness  of  the  atmosphere 
neutralizes  any  advantages  for  cultivation  which  might  be  derived  from 
the  more  constant  supply  of  moistilre.  Wood,  however,  seems  to  be 
every  where  abundant  near  the  coasts ;  and  this  may  prove  important,  as 
the  channels  of  the  archipelago  offer  great  facilities  for  communication 
by  steam  vessels. 

It  has  been  already  said  that  Russia  claims  all  the  coasts  and  islands 
north  of  the  parallel  of  54  degrees  40  minutes.  The  islands  south  of  that 
line  which  are  here  considered  as  attached  to  Oregon,  lie  in  three  groups. 

The  southernmost  group  embrac(;d  one  large  island  and  an  infinite 
number  of  smaller  ones,  extending  from  the  49th  parallel  to  the  5]st,  and 
separated  from  the  continent,  on  the  south  and  east,  by  the  channel  called 
the  Strait  of  Fuca.  The  main  island  received,  in  1792,  the  long  and 
inconvenient  appellation  of  Island  of  Quadra  and  Vancouver,  in  virtue  of  a 
compromise  between  a  British  and  a  Spanish  commander,  each  claim- 
ing the  merit  of  having  ascertained  its  insulation.  It  is  the  largest  in 
the  archipelago,  and,  indeed,  on  the  whole  west  coast  of  America,  being 
about  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles  in  length,  by  an  average  breadth  of 
forty-five  miles.  On  its  south-western  side  are  several  large  bays  contain- 
ing islands,  among  which  are  some  good  ports,  formerly  much  frequented 
by  fur  traders.  The  principal  of  these  places  is  Nootka  or  King  George's 
Sound,  opening  to  the  Pacific  in  the  latitude  of  49^  degrees,  between 
Woody  Point,  on  the  north,  and  Point  Breakers,  on  the  south;  and  offer- 
ing a  safe  harbor  for  vessels  in  Friendly  Cove,  about  eight  miles  from  the 
ocean.  Near  Nootka,  on  the  west,  is  another  bay,  called  Clyoquot;  far- 
ther in  the  same  direction,  at  the  entrance  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  is  Nitti- 
nat ;  and  within  the  strait  are  several  other  harbors,  generally  protected 
by  small  islands.  Nootka  Sound  was,  in  1789,  the  scene  of  occurrences 
which  gave  to  it  much  celebrity,  as  they  first  rendered  the  north-west 
coasts  of  America  the  subject  of  dispute  and  convention  between  the 
governments  of  European  nations. 

Queen  Charlotte's  Island,  so  called  by  the  British,  or  Washington's 
Island,  as  it  was  named  by  the  Americans  in  1789,  forms  the  centre  of 
another  group,  situated  between  the  latitudes  of  52  and  54  degrees,  at  a 
considerable  distance  from  the  continent.  The  principal  island  is  of  tri- 
angular form,  and  is  rather  smaller  in  superficial  extent  than  the  Island 
of  Quadra  and  Vancouver,  though  larger  than  any  other  in  the  archipelago. 
Its  north-western  extremity  received  from  the  Spanish  navigator  Perez, 
who  discovered  it  in  1774,  the  name  of  Cape  Santa  Margarita,  but  is 
now  generally  known  as  Cape  North;  the  north-east  end  was  called  by 
the  Americans  Sandy  Point,  and  afterward,  by  the  Spaniards,  Cape  Invisi- 
ble; the  southern  extremity  is  Cape  St.  James.  The  island  presents  a 
number  of  bays,  aflfording  good  harbors,  which  were  first  examined,  sur- 
veyed, and  named,  by  the  American  fur  traders  ;  and  afterwards  received 
from  British  and  Spanish  navigators  the  appellations  usually  assigned  to 
them  on  maps.  The  principal  of  these  bays  are,  on  the  northern  side, 
Hancock's  River,  the  Port  Estrada  of  tlie  Spaniards,  near  Sandy  Point, 
and  Craft's  Sound,  or  Port  Mazarredo,  a  little  farther  west;  bn  the 
Pacific  coast  are  Port  Ingraham,  near  North  Cape,  and  Magee's  Sound, 
in  the  latitude  of  52^  degrees;  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  island  are 


II 

.  'ii. 

ll'i; 


i/; 


llli 


'  ill 


30 


GEOGIUPHT    OF    OKEUON. 


Skitikis,  in  latitude  of  53  degrees  20  minutes,  Cummashawa,  a  few  miles 
farther  south,  and  still  farther  in  the  same  direction,  Port  Ucah  and  Port 
Sturges.  The  country  around  some  of  these  places,  especially  Hancock's 
River  and  Magee's  Sound,  is  described  by  the  American  fur  traders  as 
fertile  and  beautiful,  and  enjoying'a  milder  climate  than  any  other  parts 
of  the  north-west  coasts. 

The  Princess  Royal's,  Burke's,  and  Pitt's  Island"  ^orm  a  third  division 
of  the  North- West  Archipelago,  lying  near  to  each  other  and  to  the  con- 
tinent, immediately  east  of  Q,ueen  Charlotte's  Island.  They  are  all  small 
and  rocky,  and  nothing  worthy  of  note  appears  in  the  accounts  of  them. 

To  the  aboriginal  inhabitants  of  Oregon  it  would  be  inconsistent  with 
the  plan  of  this  work  to  devote  much  attention.  They  are  all  savages; 
and  they  make  no  figure  in  the  history  of  the  country,  over  the  destinies 
of  which  they  have  not  exerted,  and  probably  never  will  exert,  any  influ- 
ence. The  principal  tribes  are  the  Clatsops  and  Chenooks,  occupying 
the  country  on  each  side  of  the  Columbia,  near  its  mouth ;  the  Klamets 
and  Killamucks,  of  the  Umqua;  the  Classets,  on  the  Strait  of  Fuca; 
the  Kootanies,  and  the  Salish  or  Flatheads,  of  the  country  about  the 
northern  branches  of  the  Columbia,  and  the  Shoshones,  the  Sahaptins 
or  Nez-perces,  the  Kayouses,  Walla-Wallas,  and  Chopunnish,  who  rove 
through  the  regions  of  the  Lewis  branch.  These  tribes  differ  in  habits 
and  disposition  only  so  far  as  they  are  affected  by  the  mode  of  life  which 
the  nature  of  the  country  occupied  by  them  respectively  compels  them  to 
adopt ;  the  people  of  the  sea-coasts,  who  venture  out  upon  the  ocean,  and 
attack  the  whale,  being  generally  much  bolder  and  more  ferocious  than 
those  of  the  middle  country,  who  derive  their  subsiste:-,  '^  ^v  the  quiet 
and  unexciting  employments  of  fishing  in  the  river  and  J-  ,  •  •  for  roots. 
Among  the  peculiar  habits  of  some  of  the  tribes  shoul  i  :  :entioned 
that  of  compressing  the  heads  of  their  infants  by  boards  and  bandages,  so 
as  materially  to  alter  their  shape  ;  which  induced  the  discoverers  of  the 
country  to  apply  to  those  people  the  name  of  Flathead  Indians.  This 
custom  appears  to  have  prevailed  chiefly  among  the  tribes  of  the  lower 
Columbia,  and  but  little  among  those  dwelling  on  the  northern  branches 
of  the  river,  to  whom  the  appellation  of  Flatheads  is,  however,  at  present 
confined.  "The  Blackfeet,  so  much  dreaded  by  travellers  in  the  middle 
region,  chiefly  inhabit  the  country  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  on  the 
Yellowstone,  and  the  Missouri  above  its  falls,  and  annually  make  in- 
roads upon  the  Shoshones  and  the  Chopunnish,  whom  they  rob  of  their 
horses,  their  only  wealth.  The  principal  tribes  in  the  country  north  of  the 
Columbia  regions,  are  the  Chilcotins  and  the  Talcotins,  between  whom 
the  most  deadly  hostility  subsists.  The  natives  of  the  North-West  Ar- 
chipelago are  the  most  cunning  and  ferocious  of  all  these  savages;  par- 
ticularly those  of  the  vicinity  of  Nootka,  who  appear  also  to  be  the  most 
intelligent.  The  number  of  the  aborigines  of  all  those  territories  cannot 
be  ascertained,  but  it  is  supposed  not  to  exceed  thirty  thousand,  and  is 
every  where  diminishing. 

Among  these  people,  missionaries  of  various  Christian  sects  have  long 
been  laboring  with  assiduity,  though,  as  it  would  seem,  from  all  accounts, 
with  little  advantage.  The  Roman  Catholics  have  made  the  greatest 
number  of  converts,  if  we  assume  the  reception  of  baptism  as  the  test 
of  conversion ;  whole  tribes  submitting  at  once,  on  the  first  summons,  to 
the  rite.     The  Methodists  and  Presbyterians  employ  themselves  chiefly  in 


i 


j 

'•■ji 

1 


GEOGRAPHT    OF    OREGON. 


31 


imparting  a  knowledge  of  the  simplest  and  most  useful  arts,  and  have 
thus  induced  some  of  the  natives  to  engage  regularly  in  agricultural  pur- 
suits ;  but  the  poverty  of  the  soil  generally  renders  their  efforts  in  this 
way  unavailing.  The  last-mentioned  missionaries  also  endeavor  to  con- 
vey religious  and  literary  instruction  to  the  Indians  through  the  medium 
of  their  own  languages,  into  which  books  have  been  translated  and 
printed  in  the  country.  Perhaps  it  would  be  better  to  teach  the  natives 
to  speak  and  read  English;  but  the  other  system  has  been  generally 
adopted  by  American  missionaries  in  all  parts  of  the  world. 

The  civilized  inhabitants  of  Oregon  are,  as  already  mentioned  in  the 
General  View,  either  citizens  of  the  United  States  or  servants  of  the 
British  Hudson's  Bay  Company :  the  latter  body  enjoying,  by  special 
grant  from  the  government,  tlid  use  of  all  the  territories  claimed  by  Great 
Britain  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  as  well  as  the  protection  of  British 
laws,  in  virtue  of  an  act  of  Parlif-Kient ;  whilst  the  citizens  of  the  United 
States  remain  independent  of  all  authority  and  jurisdiction  whatever. 

The  establishments  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  have  been,  until 
recently,  devoted  exclusively  to  the  purposes  of  the  fur  trade:  but,  within 
a  few  years  past,  several  farms  have  been  laid  out  and  worked,  under  the 
direction  of  the  agents  of  the  company ;  and  large  quantities  of  timber 
are  cut,  and  salmon  are  taken  and  cured,  for  exportation  to  the  Russian 
possessions,  to  Mexico,  and  to  the  Sandwich  Islands.  The  furs  are  ob- 
tained partly  by  hunters  s.nd  trappers,  in  the  regular  service  of  the  com- 
pany, but  chiefly  by  trade  with  the  Indians  of  the  surrounding  country  ; 
and  they  are  transported  from  the  diiferent  establishments  in  the  interior, 
eithor  to  Montreal  or  to  York  Factory  on  Hudson's  Bay,  or  to  Fort  Van- 
couver on  the  Columbia,  whence  they  are  sent  in  the  company's  vessels 
to  London.  The  goods  for  the  trade,  and  the  supply  of  the  establish- 
ments, are  received  in  the  same  manner  ;  the  interior  transportation  being 
performed  almost  entirely  in  boats,  on  the  rivers  and  lakes,  between 
which  the  articles  are  carried  on  the  backs  of  the  voyageurs  or  boatmen. 
The  regular  servants  of  the  company,  in  the  territories  west  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  are,  a  chief  factor,  two  chief  traders,  and  about  four  hundred 
clerks,  traders,  voyageurs,  &c. ;  besides  whom,  nearly  as  many  laborers 
from  Canada  and  from  Europe  are  employed  on  the  farms,  and  Indians 
are  occasionally  engaged  when  wanted.  The  factors,  traders,  and  clerks, 
are,  for  the  most  part,  Scotchmen  or  Canadians ;  the  hunters  and  other 
regular  servants  are  nearly  all  half-breeds.  The  company  maintains  on 
the  Pacific  coasts  one  steamer  and  six  or  eight  sail  vessels,  all  armed, 
and  three  large  ships  conduct  the  communications  between  the  Columbia 
and  London. 

The  establishments  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  are  generally  called 
forts,  and  are  sufliciently  fortified  to  resist  any  attacks  which  might  be 
expected.  Those  beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains  are  in  number  about 
twenty-two,  of  which  several,  including  all  the  largest  are  near  the  coasts. 

Fort  Vancouver,  the  principal  of  these  establishments  west  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  is  situated  near  the  north  bank  of  the  Columbia,  at  the 
distance  of  eighty-two  miles  in  a  direct  line  from  its  mouth,  and  about 
one  hundred  and  twenty  miles  following  the  course  of  the  stream.  The 
fort  is  simply  a  large,  square,  picketed  enclosure,  containing  houses  for 
the  residence  of  the  factor,  traders,  clerks,  and  upper  servants  of  the 
company,  magazines  for  the  furs  and  goods,  and  workshops  of  various 


tl'''     'f 

:  'I 


32 


GEOORAPHT    OF    OREGON. 


il   III 


Hi'  ':!' 


kinds;  immediately  behind  it  are  a  garden  and  orchard,  and  behind  these 
is  the  farm,  of  about  six  hundred  acres,  with  barns  and  all  other  necessary 
buildings.  West  of  the  fort  are  the  hospital  and  houses  for  the  voyageurs 
and  Indians ;  about  two  miles  lower  down  the  river  are  the  dairy  and 
piggery,  with  numerous  herds  of  cattie,  hogs,  &c. ;  and  about  three  miles 
above  the  fort  are  water-mills  for  grinding  corn  and  sawing  plank,  and 
sheds  for  curing  salmon.  The  number  of  persons  usually  attached  to  the 
post  is  not  less  than  seven  hundred,  of  whom  more  than  half  are  Indians 
of  the  country,  the  others  beinv  natives  of  Great  Britain,  Canadians,  and 
half-breeds.  The  whole  establishment  is  governed  nearly  on  the  plan  of 
one  of  the  small  towns  of  Central  Europe  during  the  middle  ages;  the 
stockade  fort  representing  the  baronial  castle,  in  which  the  great  digni- 
taries of  the  company  exerciso  almost  absolute  authority. 

Fort  George,  at  the  distance  of  ten  miles  from  the  Pacific,  on  the 
south  bank  of  the  Columbia,  occupies  the  site  of  a  trading  establishment 
called  Astoria,  formed  by  th.  Americans  in  1811,  which  was  taken  by 
the  British  during  the  war  in  1813,  and,  thoug.'  subsequently  restored  in 
virtue  of  the  treaty  of  Ghent,  has  never  since  be*  p  re-occupied  by  citizens 
of  the  United  States.  The  first  buildings  were  otdtroyed  by  fire  in  1820 ; 
after  which,  some  small  houses  were  erected  by  the  Hudson's  Bay  Com- 
pany on  the  same  spot,  where  a  trader  and  three  or  four  other  persons 
generally  reside.  Fort  Umqua  is  near  the  mouth  of  the  Umqua  River, 
which  enters  the  Pacific  about  a  hundred  and  eighty  miles  south  of 
the  Ivolumbia,  and  affords  a  harbor  for  small  vessels.  Fort  Nasqually  is 
at  the  mouth  of  a  little  river  emptying  into  Puget's  Sound,  the  southern- 
most part  of  the  great  bay  called  Admiralty  Inlet,  which  extends  south- 
wardly into  the  continent  from  the  Strait  of  Fuca :  near  it  the  Hudson's 
Bay  Company  has  large  farms,  which  are  said  to  be  in  a  prosperous 
condition ;  this  place  is  also  the  scat  of  a  Roman  Catholic  mission, 
under  the  direction  of  a  bishop  in  partibus,  (the  bishop  of  Juliopolis,) 
whose  influence  is,  no  doubt,  important  to  the  company,  as  the  majority 
of  its  serv?nts  are  of  that  religion.  Fort  Langley  is  at  the  entrance  of 
Fraser's  River  into  the  eastern  extremity  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  in  lati- 
tude of  49  degrees  25  minutes ;  farther  north  is  Fort  M'Loughlin,  on 
Milbank  Sound,  and  Fort  Simpson,  on  Douglas  Island,  in  the  North- 
West  Archipelago,  in  latitude  .54^  degrees.  The  company  has  moreover 
made  an  agreement,  with  the  Russians,  who  claim  the  coasts  and  islands 
north  of  the  parallel  of  54  degrees  40  minutes,  by  which  the  British 
traders  enjoy  the  exclusive  use  of  the  coasts  of  the  continent,  extending 
from  that  parallel  to  Cape  Spenser,  near  the  58th  degree ;  and  a  post  has 
been  in  consequence  established  near  the  mouth  of  the  Stikine,  a  large 
river  emptying  into  the  channel  called  Prince  Frederick's  Sound,  in  the 
latitude  of  56  degrees  50  minutes. 

In  the  interior  of  the  continent,  the  Hudson's  Bay  Compan}  has  on  the 
Columbia,  above  its  falls,  Fort  Walla-Walla,  or  Nez-Perce,  on  the  east 
side  of  the  northern  branch,  near  its  confluence  with  the  southern;  Fort 
Okinagan,  at  the  entrance  of  the  Okinagan  River  into  the  north  or  main 
branch;  Fort  Colville,  near  the  Kettle  Falls;  and  some  others,  of  less 
consequence.  On  the  l^ewis,  or  ^reat  southern  branch,  are  Fort  Boise, 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Boise,  or  Reed's  River,  and  Fort  Hall,  at  the  en- 
trance of  the  Portneuf.  North  of  the  (Columbia  country  are  Fort  Al- 
exandria, on  Fraser's  River,  and  others  on  the  lakes,  which  abound  in 


OEOGRAPHT   OF    OBEGON. 


that  part  of  the  continent.  All  these  are,  however,  on  a  very  small  scale, 
and  seldom  contain  more  than  two  or  three  clerks  or  traders,  and  a  few 
Indians  or  half-breed  hunters. 

The  citizens  of  the  United  States  in  Oregon,  previous  to  1843,  did  not 
probably  exceed  four  hundred  in  number,  nearly  all  of  whom  were  estab- 
lished as  farmers,  graziers,  or  mechanics,  in  the  valley  of  the  Wiliamet, 
and  on  the  Walla-Walla;  very  few  being  engaged  in  any  commercial 
pursuit.  Their  condition  appears  to  have  been  prosperous,  in  conse- 
quer.t;,  there  is  reason  to  believe,  of  their  industry,  economy,  and 
morality,  rather  than  of  any  particular  advantages  offered  by  the  country. 
The  Protestant  missionaries  reside  on  the  Wiliamet,  at  the  Falls  of  the 
Columbia,  near  Walla-Walla,  in  the  Spokan  and  Kotanie  countries,  and 
in  some  other  places,  where  they  labor  for  their  own  support,  as  well  as 
for  the  improvement  and  conversion  of  the  natives.  The  first  printing 
press,  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  was  set  up  at  the  Walla-Walla 
mission,  in  1839 ;  on  it  books  are  now  printed  from  types  set  up  by  na- 
tive compositors.  The  Roman  Catholics,  from  Missouri,  have  also 
several  stations,  principally  in  the  regions  of  the  Clarke  River,  in  which 
they  appear  to  be  laboring  diligently  for  the  advancement  of  their  own 
religion. 

The  number  of  American  citizens  in  Oregon  was,  however,  nearly 
quadrupled,  in  the  latter  part  of  1843,  by  the  arrival  of  more  than  a  thou- 
sand persons  —  men,  women,  and  children — from  the  Mississippi  val- 
ey;*  and  a  still  greater  number  went  thither  in  the  following  year. 
These  emigrants  will,  most  probably,  likewise  establish  themselves  in 
he  Wiliamet  valley,  or  on  the  Umqua,  in  which  regions  there  is  a 
ufficiency  of  good  land  for  the  support  of  more  than  a  hundred  thou- 
and  persons;  and  they  will  be  able  at  once  to  obtain  the  means  ^f 
subsistence,  as  the  majority  of  them  have  been  doubtless  accustomed 
from  their  childhood  to  the  labors  and  privations  incident  to  the  settle- 
ment of  a  new  country.  Few  of  them  will  be  disposed  to  fix  their 
residence  in  the  territory  north  of  the  Columbia,  which  is  claimed  by 
Great  Britain,  until  the  question  of  right  between  that  power  and  the 
United  States  shall  have  been  definitively  determined. 

The  trappers  and  hunters  from  the  United  States  have  been  compelled, 
in  consequence  of  the  exclusive  measures  adopted  by  the  Hudson's  Bay 
Company,  to  quit  the  regions  of  the  Columbia,  and  confine  themselves 
to  the  north-W€  jtern  part  of  California,  about  the  head-waters  of  the 
Colorado  River  and  the  Utah  Lake.  In  the  summer  of  each  year,  they 
repair,  with  the  produce  of  their  labors,  to  certain  places  of  rendezvous, 
where  they  meet  the  traders,  bringing  clothes,  hardware,  arms,  ammu- 
nition, groceri'  .  and  other  articles,  from  Missouri ;  and  an  exchange  of 
merchandise  is  effected  to  the  benefit  of  both  parties.  The  principal  ren- 
dezvous is  on  the  banks  of  the  Sidskadee  or  Green  River,  one  of  the  con- 
fluents of  the  Colorado,  situated  near  the  western  extremity  of  the  great 
gap  in  the  Rocky  Mountains,  called  the  South  Pass,  through  which  all 
the  communications  between  the  regions  of  the  Mississippi  on  the  one 
side,  and  Oregon  and  California  on  the  other,  are  conducted. 

"  According  to  an  enumeracion  made  at  their  encampment  on  the  Big  Blue  River,  < 
soon  afler  their  departure  from  the  Missouri,  the  numbers  of  the  emigrants  in  1843, 
were  558  males  and  442  females,  of  all  ages,  making  a  total  of  1000.  Thejr  car- 
ried with  them  121  wagons,  296  horses,  6^  oxen  in  draught,  and  973  looM  cattle; 


OEOGBAPHT    OT    OREGON. 


'i     ill 


!'■'!■! 


i 


These  communications  are  effected  entirely  by  land ;  for,  although  the 
unoccupied  territories  of  the  United  States,  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
are  traversed  by  the  Missouri,  and  its  great  tributaries  the  Yellow  Stone, 
the  Platte,  the  |[anzas,  and  the  Osage,  and  further  south,  by  the  Arkan- 
sas and  Red  rivers  emptying  into  the  Mississippi,  these  streams  afford 
few  facilities,  either  for  travel,  or  for  the  transportation  of  goods.  The 
Missouri  river  is  useful  for  communication  with  Oregon,  no  farther  up 
than  the  mouth  of  the  Platte  ;  and  the  latter  river,  though  its  position  and 
course  are  precisely  such  as  could  be  desired,  is  so  shallow,  and  presents 
8o  many  impediments  to  navigation,  that  the  lightest  boat  cannot  ascend, 
or  descend  it,  without  much  difficulty,  even  when  its  waters  are  highest. 
To  what  distance  the  Arkansas  and  Red  rivers  may  be  ascended  by 
boats,  is  not  yet  determined ;  but,  it  is  probable,  that  the  head  of  naviga- 
tion, of  the  Arkansas,  is  nearer  to  the  best  passes  in  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, than  the  mouths  of  the  Kanzas,  or  the  Platte. 

The  town  of  Independence,  in  the  State  of  Missouri,  near  the  conflu- 
ence of  the  Kanzas  with  the  Missouri,  is  now  the  usual  place  of  departure, 
and  arrival,  to  and  from  Oregon,  and  New  Mexico.  The  route  to  Ore- 
gon, extends  along  the  Kanzas  and  its  northern  branch,  called  the  Re- 
publican Fork,  towards  the  Platte ;  then  along  the  main  Platte  and  its 
northern  branch,  to  Fort  Laramie,  a  private  fur-trading  post,  situated  at 
the  junction  of  the  north  branch,  with  a  small  stream  from  the  south, 
called  Laramie's  Fork,  seven  hundred  and  fifly  miles  from  Independence. 

From  this  place,  the  road,  or  trail,  continues  along  the  Platte,  and 
through  the  Black  Hills,  an  irregular  range  skirting  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, to  the  south  pass  in  the  latter  chain,  where  lie  the  sources  of  the 
Platte,  distant  two  hundred  and  fitly  miles  from  Fort  Laramie.  A  march 
of  a  few  hours  through  this  pass,  brings  the  traveller  to  the  Sandy  River, 
a  branch  of  the  Green,  or  Sidskadee  River,  the  main  stream  of  the  Colo- 
rado :  crossing  the  Green  River,  and  ascending  one  of  its  western  tribu- 
taries called  Ham's  Fork,  he  thence  passes  over  a  small  ridge  to  the  Bear 
River,  the  principal  feeder  of  the  Utah  Salt  Lake  ;  this  he  follows,  north- 
westward, to  the  Soda  or  Beer  Springs,  and  thence,  crossing  another 
ridge,  he  reaches  the  valley  ot  the  Portneuf,  down  which,  he  makes  his 
way  to  Fort  Hall,  a  trading  post  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  at  the 
confluence  of  the  Lewis  with  the  Portneuf,  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles 
from  the  South  Pass,  and  one  thousand  two  hundred  and  fifty  miles  from 
Independence. 

Another  route  from  Independence  to  the  Colorado,  has  been  surveyed 
in  1844,  by  Lieutenant  Fremont  during  his  long  and  laborious  expedition, 
through  Oreffon  and  California,  of  which  a  Report  will  soon  be  published. 
From  the  manner  in  which  this  accomplished  officer  conducted  his  sur- 
vey of  the  valley  of  the  Platte,  there  is  every  reason  to  expect  that  he  will 
throw  much  light  on  the  geography  of  those  countries,  particularly  of  the 
region  between  the  Utah  Lake,  and  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco. 

The  route  to  Fort  Hall,  presents  comparatively  few  difficulties,  and  is 
traversed,  every  summer,  by  hundreds  of  wagons.  The  remainder  of  the 
journey  is  attended  with  many  inconveniences ;  some,  arising  from  the  na- 
ture of  the  ground,  which  may,  however,  be  lessened  or  removed,  by  the 
application  of  labor,  at  certain  points;  and  others,  from  the  want  of 
water  and  food,  for  cattle.  Travellers,  with  wagons,  generally  follow  the 
Lewis,  from  Fort  Hall,  down  to  the  vicinity  of  the  entrance  of  the  river 


OEOORAPHT    OF    OREGON. 


85 


into  the  Blue  Mountains,  and  thence,  go  northward,  to  the  upper  part  of 
the  Boise  or  Reed's  River,  through  the  valley  of  which,  they  regain  the 
Lewis,  at  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company's  post  of  Fort  Boise ;  there  they 
cross  the  Lewis,  and  thence,  strike  over  the  country,  through  the  beauti- 
ful valley  called  the  Grand  Round,  to  the  confluence  of  the  Walla-Walla 
with  the  main  Columbia,  five  hundred  miles  from  Fort  Hall.  Those  on 
foot,  or  on  horseback,  find  more  direct  lines  of  communication  between 
these  two  places. 

Below  the  Walla-Walla,  the  obstacles  to  the  passage  of  wheel  carriages, 
are,  at  present,  such  as  to  preclude  the  use  of  them  almost  entirely ;  and 
thc'  numerous  rapids  and  whirlpools  in  the  Columbia,  render  the  voyage 
down  to  the  Falls  of  that  river,  exceedingly  dangerous.  Near  the  termi- 
nation of  the  cascades,  or  lowest  falls,  is  Fort  Vancouver,  distant  two 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  from  the  Walla-Walla,  and  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five  from  the  Pacific :  and  six  miles  below  that  Fort,  is  the  mouth 
of  the  Willamet,  in  the  upper  part  of  the  valley  of  which  river,  the 
American  settlements  are  mostly  situated. 

The  passage  across  the  Continent,  through  the  British  territories,  is 
much  longer,  and  more  circuitous :  it  is  eflected,  as  already  said,  chiefly 
in  canoes  on  the  rivers  and  lakes ;  the  rest  of  the  journey  being  performed 
on  foot,  or  in  some  places,  on  horseback.  The  traders  of  the  Hudson's 
Bay  Company,  leaving  Fort  Vancouver,  ascend  the  Columbia  and  its 
northern  branch,  alternately  on  the  river,  and  along  its  banks,  about  eight 
hundred  miles,  to  the  Pass  in  the  Rocky  Mountains,  near  the  52d  degree 
of  latitude.  Thence,  they  cross,  by  land,  five  hundred  miles,  to  Edmon- 
ton, on  the  .  ih  branch  of  the  Saskatchawine,  which  river  they  descend, 
to  Norway  House,  near  the  northern  extremity  of  Lake  Winnipeg,  distant 
not  less  than  twelve  hundred  miles  from  Edmonton.  From  Norway 
House,  they  go,  either  to  York  Factory,  on  Hudson's  Bay,  distant  about 
eight  hundred  miles,  or  through  Lake  Winnipeg,  the  Lake  of  the  Woods, 
Rainy  Lake,  Savannah  River,  and  other  connecting  waters,  to  Fort  Wil- 
liam, the  great  depository  of  the  Company,  at  the  north-west  extremity  of 
Lake  Superior,  about  eight  hundred  miles  from  Norway  House,  and  nine 
hundred  from  Montreal.  Another  route  from  the  Rocky  Mountain  gap, 
to  Fort  William,  passes  along  the  south  brinch  of  the  Saskatchawine,  the 
Assinaboin,  and  the  Red  River  country;  but  the  portages  are  so  much 
longer,  that  it  is  little  used  for  transportation  of  articles  across  the  conti- 
nent. 

Thus  it  appears  that  the  distance  to  the  Lower  Columbia,  from  the 
frontiers  of  Canada,  is  about  twelve  hundred  miles  greater  than  from  the 
westernmost  point  in  the  States  of  the  American  Union.  The  journey 
through  the  British  territories,  is  indeed  performed  at  present,  in  less 
time,  by  the  servants  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  than  the  caravans 
of  men,  women  and  children,  from  the  United  States,  employ  in  their 
passage  along  the  Platte,  and  the  Lewis  :  but  the  road  for  the  latter  will 
be  constantly  improving,  and  the  journey  must  annually  become  less  in 
actual  distance,  and  much  less  laborious  and  tedious ;  whilst  the  more 
northern  route  will  forever  remain  in  its  present  condition,  scarcely  pass- 
able by  any,  except  the  hardy  and  experienced  traders,  and  voyageurs  of 
the  British  Company.  .  , 


m 


.t«.'Aft?*J»n     '=?ik      ,'!• 


t.i,'^  f^"» 


RUSSIAN    AMERICA 


i;i| 


Russia  claims,  as  already  said,  in  virtue  of  the  discoveries  and  settle- 
ments  of  her  subjects,  and  of  treaties  with  the  United  States  and  Great 
Britain,  the  whole  division  of  the  American  continent,  and  the  adjacent 
islands,  north  of  the  latitude  of  54  degrees  40  minutes,  and  west  of  a 
line  drawn  from  that  latitude,  northward,  along  the  highlands  bordering 
the. Pacific  Ocean  to  Mount  St.  Elias,  and  thence  dub  north  to  the 
Arctic  Sea.  This  power  also  claims  the  whole  of  Asia,  extending  on  the 
Pacific  north  of  the  51st  parallel,  all  the  Aleutian  Islands,  and  all  the 
Kurile  Islands,  north  of  the  latitude  of  45  degrees  40  minutes. 

Of  the  parts  of  America  thus  claimed  by  Russia,  the  islands  and  the 
coasts  of  the  continent  have  been  explored,  and  some  have  been  surveyed 
with  care ;  several  rivers,  also,  have  been  traced  to  considerable  distances 
from  their  mouths :  the  interior  regions  are,  however,  but  little  known, 
and,  from  all  accounts,  they  do  not  seem  to  merit  the  labor  and  expense 
which  would  be  required  for  their  complete  examination.  Only  small 
portions  of  the  islands  are  Bt  for  agriculture,  or  for  any  purpose  useful  to 
man,  except  fishing  and  hunting ;  the  remaining  territories  present  to  the 
eye  nothing  but  rocks,  snow,  and  ice. 

The  exclusive  use  and  government  of  all  the  islands  and  ports  of 
America  above  mentioned  are  granted  by  charter  from  the  emperor  of 
Russia  to  a  body  called  the  Russian  American  Trading  Company,  which 
has  established  on  their  coasts  a  number  of  forts,  settlements,  and  factories, 
all  devoted  to  the  purposes  of  the  fur  trade  and  fishery ;  the  coast  of  the 
continent,  south-wes*.  of  the  58th  degree  of  latitude,  has,  however,  been, 
as  already  mentioned,  leased  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  until  the  Ist 
of  June,  1850,  at  an  annual  rent,  payable  in  furs.  The  inhabitants  of  the 
Kurile,  the  Aleutian,  and  the  Kodiak  Islands  are  regarded  as  the  immedi- 
ate subjects  of  the  company ;  in  the  service  of  which,  every  man,  between 
the  ages  of  eighteen  and  fifty  years,  may  be  required  to  pass  at  least  three 
years.  The  natives  of  the  country  adjoining  the  tv>o  great  bays  called 
Cook's  Inlet  and  Prince  William's  Sound,  are  also  under  the  control  of 
this  body,  and  are  obliged  to  pay  an  annual  tax  in  furs,  though  they  are  not 
compelled  to  enter  the  regular  service.  All  the  other  aborigines  are  con- 
sidered as  independent,  except  that  they  are  allowed  to  trade  only  with  the 
Russian  American  company.  By  the  latest  accounts,  the  number  of  Rus- 
sian establishments  was  twenty-six,  all  situated  south  of  Bering's  Strait. 
The  immediate  subjects  of  the  company  were  seven  hundred  and  thirty 
Russians,  fourteen  hundred  and  forty-two  Creoles,  or  children  of  Rus- 
sian fathers  by  native  mothers,  and  eleven  thousand  aborigines  of  the 
Kurile,  Aleutian,  and  Kodiak  Islands ;  the  number  of  the  natives  in- 
habiting the  other  regions  cannot  be  ascertained,  but  must  be  very  small, 
when  compared  with  the  extent  of  the  surface. 

The  Russian  American  territories  are   politically  divided  into  six 


OEOORAPHY    OF    RUSSIAN    AMKRICA. 


37 


id   into  six 


districtB,  each  of  which  is  under  the  direction  of  an  agent ;  the  whole 
being  superintended  by  a  governor-general,  usually  an  officer  of  the 
Russian  nnvy,  residing  at  the  capital  of  the  possessions.  The  furs 
are  collected  either  by  persons  in  the  regular  service  of  the  company,  or  as 
taxes  from  its  subjects,  or  by  trade  with  the  independent  natives ;  and  they 
are  transported  in  its  vessels  to  Petropawlowsk  in  Kamtchatka,  or  to 
Ochotsk,  in  Siberia,  or,  by  special  permission  of  the  Chinese  government,  to 
Canton,  or  to  the  European  ports  of  Russia ;  the  supplies  being  received 
from  those  places  by  the  same  vessels. 

The  district  of  Sitka  comprehends  the  islands  of  the  North-West  Ar- 
chipelago, and  the  coasts  of  the  American  continent,  northward  from 
the  parallel  of  54  degrees  40  minutes,  to  Mount  St.  Elias.  The  islands 
are  six  large,  and  an  infinite  number  of  smaller  ones,  separated  from 
each  other,  and  from  the  main  land,  by  narrow,  but  generally  navigable 
channels.  The  large  islands  are  those  distinguished  on  English  maps 
as  Prince  of  Wales's  Island,  the  southernmost,  between  which  and  the 
continent,  on  the  east,  are  the  Duke  of  York's  and  the  Revillagigedo 
Islands;  farther  north,  on  the  ocean,  is  King  George  the  Third's  Ar- 
chipelago, including  Baranof's  and  Tchichagof's  Islands;  and  east  of 
these  latter  are  Admiralty  and  some  other  islands. 

Opposite  the  western  end  of  the  channel,  separating  Baranof's  from 
Tchichagof's  Island,  is  a  small  island,  consisting  of  a  single  and  beautiful 
conical  peak,  rising  from  the  ocean,  which  received  from  its  Spanish 
discoverers,  in  1775,  the  name  of  Mount  San  Jacinto,  but  is  better  known 
by  the  English  appellation  of  Mount  Edgecumb ;  a  narrow  passage,  called 
Norfolk  Sound,  separates  it  from  Baranof's  Island,  on  the  shore  of  which 
stands  Sitka,  or  New  Archangel,  the  capital  of  Russian  America.  This 
is  a  small  town,  of  wooden  houses,  covered  mostly  with  iron,  protected,  or 
xather  overlooked,  by  batteries,  and  inhabited  by  about  a  thousand  per- 
sons, of  whom  nearly  one  half  are  Russians,  the  majority  of  the  others 
being  Creoles.  The  governor's  house  is  large  and  substantially  built, 
and  is  surmounted  by  a  lighthouse ;  the  fortifications,  which  are  also  of 
wood,  are  armed  ny  about  forty  guns :  attached  to  the  establishment  are 
an  extensive  arsenal,  including  a  ship-yard,  a  foundery,  and  shops  for 
various  artificers,  a  hospital,  and  a  church,  splendidly  adorned  in  the 
interior.  Sitka,  moreover,  though  thus  remote  from  all  civilized  coun- 
tries, contains  several  schools,  in  which  the  children  are  instructed  at  the 
expense  of  the  company,  a  library  of  two  thousand  volumes,  a  cabinet  of 
natural  history,  and  an  observatory  supplied  with  the  instruments  most 
necessary  for  astronomical  and  magnetic  observations. 

On  comparing  the  results  of  meteorological  observations,  it  appears 
that  the  mean  temperature  of  every  month  of  the  year,  at  Sitka,  is  higher 
than  that  of  any  place  in  America,  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  within 
several  degrees  of  the  same  latitude.  No  attempts  at  cultivation  have, 
however,  been  made  there  or  in  any  other  part  of  Russian  America,  except 
at  the  settlement  of  Ross,  in  California,  on  a  scale  sufficiently  large  to 
authorize  any  opinions  as  to  the  agricultural  value  of  the  soil. 

The  district  of  Kodiak  coni^rises  all  the  coasts  from  the  North-West 
Archipelago,  northward  and  westward,  to  the  southern  extremity  of  the 
peninsula  of  Aliaska,  with  the  adjacent  islands,  as  also  a  portion  of  the 
coast  of  the  Sea  of  Kamtchatka,  on  the  north-west  side  of  Aliaska.  The 
largest  island  is  Kodiak,  situated  near  the  east  coast  of  Aliaska,  from 


88 


OEOORAPHY    or    RUSSIAN    AMERICA. 


r 


I      ! 


4,.: 

;:'■■■   i 


which  it  is  separated  by  the  Strait  of  8chelikof,  and  containing,  on  iti 
north-east  side,  St.  Paul's,  an  inconsiderable  place,  formerly  the  capital 
of  Russian  America.  Norch  of  Kodiak,  an  arm  of  the  ocean,  called  by 
the  English  Cook's  Inlet,  and  by  Russians  the  Gulf  of  Kenay,  stretches 
northwardly  into  the  continent  nearly  two  hundred  miles;  east  of  vvhich, 
and  separated  from  it  by  a  peninsula,  is  another  great  bay,  called  Prince 
William's  Sound,  or  the  Gulf  of  Tschugatsch,  containing  a  number  of 
islands;  and  still  farther  east  is  Comptroller's  Bay,  into  which  empties 
Copper  River,  the  largest  stream  flowing  from  this  part  of  America. 
Each  of  these  bays  was  minutely  examined  by  Cook,  in  1778,  and  by 
Vancouver,  in  1794,  while  in  search  of  a  passage  to  the  Atlantic;  and 
several  good  harbors  were  thus  discovered,  on  the  shores  of  which  the 
Russians  have  formed  trading  establishments. 

The  most  remarkable  natural  feature  of  this  part  of  America  is,  how< 
ever,  the  great  volcanic  peak  of  Mount  St.  Elias,  which  rises  from  the 
shore  of  the  Pacific,  under  the  61st  parallel  of  latitude,  to  the  height  of 
more  than  seventeen  thousand  feet  above  the  ocean  level.  Near  it,  on  the 
south-east,  is  Mount  Fairweather,  only  two  thousand  feet  less  in  elevation ; 
and  between  the  two  peaks  lies  Admiralty,  or  Bering's,  or  Yakutat  Bay, 
where  the  Russian  navigators  Bering  and  Tchirikof  are  supposed  to 
h^ve  first  anchored  on  their  voyage  of  discovery  from  Kamtchatka, 
in  1741. 

The  peninsula  of  Aliaska  is  a  chain  of  lolly  volcanic  mountains, 
stretching  through  the  Pacific  from  the  latitude  of  59  degrees  south-west- 
ward to  that  of  54  degrees  40  minutes.  The  most  elevated  peak,  called 
Mount  Scheschaldin,  ia  frequently  in  action,  throwing  forth  large  quanti- 
ties of  lava  and  ashes.  Near  the  southern  extremity  of  the  peninsula,  on 
the  east,  is  the  group  of  small  islands,  called  the  Schumagin  Islands ;  and 
from  the  same  extremity,  as  if  in  continuation  of  the  peninsula,  the  Aleu- 
tian Islands  extend,  at  short  distances  apart,  in  a  line  nearly  due  westward, 
more  than  six  hundred  miles,  to  the  vicinity  of  Kamtchatka. 

The  Aleutian  Islands  include  two  districts  of  the  Russian  American 
possessions.  The  easternmost  and  largest  islands  of  the  archipelago, 
called  the  Fox  Islands,  among  which  are  Unimak,  Unalashka,  and  Umnak, 
and  the  small  group  of  the  Pribulow  Islands,  lying  a  little  farther  north 
and  west  of  Aliaska,  form  the  district  of  Unalashka.  The  district  of 
Atcha  comprises  the  other  islands,  which  are  small,  and  are  divided  into 
three  groups,  caller^  the  Rat,  the  Andreanowsky,  and  the  Commodore 
Islands.  These  islands  are  all  mountains,  rising  above  the  sea,  some  of 
them,  to  a  great  height:  only  the  larger  ones  are  inhabited,  or  indeed 
habitable ;  the  others  are  visited  at  certain  periods  by  the  Russian  hunt- 
ers and  fishermen,  in  search  of  the  animals  which  abound  on  their  shores. 
The  principal  settlement  is  Illiluk,  on  the  Bay  of  Samagoondha,  in  the 
north-east  part  of  Unalashka,  which  is  also  the  residence  of  a  bishop  of 
the  Greek  church. 

The  northern,  or  Michaelof,  district  includes  all  the  territories  and 
islands  of  America,  north  of  Aliaska,  bordering  on  the  division  of  the 
Pacific,  called  the  Sea  of  Kamtchatka,  which  extends  from  the  Aleutian 
IsJands  to  Bering's  Strait :  the  only  establishments,  however,  are  those 
on  vhe  shores  of  the  great  gulf  of  that  sea,  called  Norton's  Sound,  south 
of  the  64th  parallel  of  latitude.  The  principal  of  these  establishments 
is  Fort  St.  Michael,  near  Stuart's  Island,  to  which  furs,  skins,  oil,  and 


:V5?£; 


GEOGRAPHT   OF   THE    SANDWICH    ISLANDS. 


39 


ivory  tusks,  are  brought  by  the  Esquimaux  and  Tchukskies  from  the 
islands  near  Bering's  Strait  and  the  shores  of  the  Arctic  Sea.  Several 
expeditions  hnvo  been  recently  made  by  Russian  olTicers  into  the  interior 
of  these  countries,  in  which  two  large  rivers,  t^e  Kwikpak  and  the 
Kuskokwim,  emptying  into  the  sea  between  the  tiOth  and  the  03d  de- 
grees of  latitude,  were  traced  to  great  distances  from  their  mouths. 

The  part  of  Asia  bathed  by  the  Sea  of  Kamtchatka,  like  the  opposite 
part  of  America,  is  a  waste  of  snow-covered  rocks,  among  which  rise 
chains  of  lof\y  mountains.  The  principal  of  these  chains  extends  south- 
ward through  the  Pacific  from  the  60th  parallel  of  latitude,  forming  the  great 
peninsula  of  Kamtchatka :  south  of  which  stretch  the  Kurile  Islands, 
south  of  these  the  Japan  Islands,  and  still  farther  south,  the  Philip- 
pine Islands;  all  formmg  parts  of  the  same  line  of  volcanoes  which 
extends  along  the  west  coasts  of  North  America.  The  only  place  of 
importance  in  Kamtchatka  is  Petropawlowsk,  a  small  town  situated  on 
the  Bay  of  Avatscha,  in  the  south-east  part  of  the  peninsula,  in  latitude 
of  53  degrees  58  minutes.  Near  the  point  where  the  peninsula  joins 
the  continent  stands  another  small  town,  called  Ochotsk,  on  the  north- 
ernmost shore  of  the  Gulf  of  Ochotsk,  which  separates  Kamtchatka  from 
the  main  land  on  the  west. 

The  Kurile  Islands  are  twenty-two  in  number,  of  which  nineteen  are 
subject  to  Russia,  and  the  others  to  Japan.  The  Russian  Islands  form 
one  district  of  the  Russian  American  Company's  possessions ;  they  are 
all  small,  and  of  little  value,  many  of  them  being  entirely  without  springs 
of  fresh  water.  The  Russians  have  but  one  establishment  on  them, 
called  Semussir,  in  Urup,  the  southernmost  of  the  islands,  from  which 
some  seal-skins  are  annually  carried  to  Petropawlowsk  and  Ochotsk. 


THE  SANDWICH  ISLANDS. 

These  islands,  sometimes  called  the  Hawaiian  Archipelago,  are  situ- 
ated in  the  north-west  division  of  the  Pacific,  nearly  due  south  of  Aliaska, 
and  west  of  the  southern  extremity  of  California,  at  nearly  equal  distances 
—  that  is,  about  two  thousand  five  hundred  miles  —  from  each  of  those 
parts  of  America,  and  from  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco.  Their  distance 
from  Canton  is  about  five  thousand  miles.  They  are  ten  in  number, 
extending,  in  a  curved  line,  about  three  hundred  miles  in  length,  from  '.he 
19th  degree  of  latitude,  north-westward,  to  the  22d  :  their  whole  super- 
ficial extent  is  estimated  at  six  thousand  six  hundred  square  miles,  and 
the  number  of  their  population,  by  the  latest  accounts,  was  about  one 
hundred  and  fifty  thousand. 

The  south-easternmost  of  the  islands,  embracing  two  thirds  of  the 
surface,  and  more  than  half  of  the  population,  of  the  whole,  is  Owyhee, 
(or  Hawaii,  according  to  the  orthography  adopted  by  the  American 
missionaries.*)  North-west  of  Owyhee  is  Mowee,  (or  Maui,)  the  second 
in  size  of  the  islands,  with  about  twenty  thousand  inhabitants.  Near 
Mowee,  on  the  west,  are  Tahoorowa,  (Kahulawe,)  Morokini,  (Moiokini,) 
Ranai,  (Lanai,)  and  Morotai,  (Molokai,)  all  of  them  small  and  unimpor- 
tant.    Farther  in  the  same  direction  is  Woahoo,  (Oahu,)  nearly  as  large 

**  See  account  of  this  system  at  p.  330  of  the  History. 


4ft 


UEOQRAPitY    or    Till:    HANOWICH    ISLANDS. 


and  populous  m  Mowpo,  nnd  prrhiipH  tlio  moHt  valuable  of  oil  the  islands, 
agriculturally  and  coinrncrciully ;  aud  oiglily  miles  farther  wchI  are  the 
large  inlnnd  of  Atooi,  (Kauai,)  ntid  thu  Hiniiller  oncH  of  Oncuhow,  (Ni« 
hau,)  and  Tahoura,  ^Kaula,)  which  complete  the  number  of  the  group. 

Thu  inlandH  arc  all  niouutaiiiouH  and  volcanic.  On  Owyhee  are  three 
great  peaks — Mowna  Roa,  (Mauna  Lou,)  fourteen  thousand  feet  high, 
Nlowna  Kca,  and  Mowna  Ilualaici,  from  which  eruptions  occasionally 
take  place  more  cxtcn.<)ivc  in  their  eti'ects  than  any  others  on  record, 
except,  perha|)H,  thoHC  in  Iceland.  They,  nevertheless,  contain  large 
tracts  of  tine  land,  which,  under  the  intluence  of  a  regular  and  genini 
climate,  are  made  to  yield  all  the  productions  of  the  tropical,  and  many 
of  those  of  the  temperate  regions ;  and  they  are  probably  destined  to  be 
to  the  countries  bordering  upon  the  North  Pacific  what  the  West  Indies 
arc  to  those  on  the  North  Atlantic.  They  remain  in  the  poHsesaion  of 
their  aboriginal  occupants,  who  appear  to  evince  considerable  aptitude 
to  receive  instruction,  and  have,  with  the  aid  of  some  missionaries  from 
the  United  States,  established  a  regular  government,  in  the  form  of  u 
hereditary  monarchy,  under  constitutional  restrictions.  The  native 
population  is,  however,  rapidly  diminishing,  while  that  of  foreigners, 
especially  from  the  United  States,  is  increasing. 

The  principal  ports  in  the  islands  are  Ilonoruru,  (Honolulu,)  on  the 
south  side  of  Woahoo,  and  Lahainn,  on  the  west  side  of  Mowee.  The 
town  of  Honoruru  contains  about  ten  thousand  inhabitants ;  it  is  much 
frequented,  especially  by  the  whaling  vessels  of  the  United  Slates ;  and 
property  to  a  great  amount  in  manufactured  articles,  provisions,  oil, 
&.C.,  belonging  to  Airncan  citizens,  is  often  deposited  there.  Owyhee 
has  no  good  harbor,  and  the  only  places  in  it  where  vessels  find  secure 
anchorage  are  the  Bays  of  Karakakooa,  (Kcalakeakua,)  in  which  Captain 
Cook  was  murdered  in  1779,  and  Toyahyah,  (Kawaihae,)  on  the  west 
side  of  the  island. 


About  two  thousand  miles  south-cast  from  the  Sandwich  Islands  are 
the  Marquesas  Islands,  of  which  the  five  northernmost,  the  most  impor- 
tant in  the  group,  discovered  in  April,  1791,  by  Captain  Ingraham,  of 
the  brig  Hope,  of  Boston,  and  named  the  Washington  Islands,  were 
occupied,  in  1842,  by  the  French.  Six  hundred  miles  south-west  of 
these  lie  the  Society  Islands,  of  which  the  largest,  Otaheite,  or  Tahiti, 
according  to  the  new  nomenclature,  has  been  the  subject  of  conten- 
tion between  France  and  Great  Britain,  in  consequence  of  the  at- 
tempts of  the  former  power  to  take  possession  of  it.  The  Marquesas 
are  small,  rocky,  and  unproductive,  and  cannot  afford  support  to  more 
than  a  small  number  of  civilized  people  ;  so  that  the  French  will  proba- 
bly find  it  prudent  to  abandon  them.  Otaheite,  on  the  contrary,  contains 
a  large  extent  of  the  richest  soil,  and  has  every  other  requisite  for  a 
valuable  possession  to  a  maritime  and  commercial  nation. 


PROJECTS   rOR   CANALS   UNITING  THE   TWO   OCEANS. 


41 


PROJECTS  FOR  CANALS  UNITING  THE  TWO  OCEANS. 

It  will  also  be  proper,  in  conclusion,  to  offer  some  observations  on  s 
subject  which  may  be  considered  worthy  of  interest  here,  from  its  ap- 
parent connection  with  the  destinies  of  North-West  America. 

The  only  nieans  of  communication  for  vessels  between  the  Atlantic 
and  the  Pacific  Oceans  at  present  known  or  believed  to  exist,  are  through 
the  seas  south  of  the  southern  extremities  of  America  and  Africa ;  and 
each  of  these  routes  being  circuitous  and  dangerous,  the  question  as  to 
the  practicability  of  a  canal,  for  the  passage  of  ships  through  the  central 
parts  of  the  American  continent  where  those  seas  are  separated  by  narrow 
tracts  of  land,  has  been  frequently  agitated.  Humboldt,  in  his  justly- 
celebrated  essay  on  Mexico,  indicated  nine  places  in  America,  in  which 
the  waters  of  the  two  oceans,  or  of  streams  entering  into  them  respec- 
tively, are  situated  at  short  distances  apart.  Of  these  places  it  is  necessary 
here  to  notice  but  three,  to  each  of  which  attention  has  been  strongly 
directed,  at  different  tiir  i,  and  especially  ol  late  years,  in  the  expectation 
that  such  a  nnvigsible  passage  for  siiips  might  be  eflfected  through  it. 
They  are,  —  the  Isthmus  of  Panama  —  Nicaragua  —  and  the  Isthmus 
of  Tehuantepec. 

With  regard  to  the  last-.nentiom  u  of  thes  places,  it  has  been  deter- 
mined, by  accurate  surveys,  that  the  mountai  .  chain,  separating  the  two 
oceans,  is  nowhere  less  than  a  thousand  f -•  L  in  height  above  the  level 
of  the  sea ;  and  that  a  canal  connecting  the  iliver  Gu  lecualco,  flowing 
into  the  Mexican  Gulf,  with  the  P  u'li,  must  passtl.  -igh  an  open  cut 
of  nearly  that  depth,  or  a  tunnel,  m  e'iher  case  more  than  thirty  miles 
in  length,  as  there  is  no  water  on  ihe  summit  to  supply  locks,  should  it 
be  found  practicable  to  construct  them.  The  Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec, 
however,  offers  many  advantages  for  travellers,  and  even  for  the  trans- 
portation of  precious  commodities,  especially  to  the  people  of  the  United 
States.  The  mouth  of  the  Guasecualco  River,  on  its  northern  shore,  is 
less  than  seven  hundred  miles  from  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi,  and 
only  one  hundred  miles  by  the  road  from  a  port  on  the  Pacific,  near 
Tehuantepec,  which  might  be  made  a  good  harbor ;  so  that  even  now  a 
traveller  might  go  in  a  fortnight  from  Washington  to  the  Pacific  coast, 
and  thence,  by  a  steam  vessel,  in  ten  days  more,  to  the  mouth  of  the 
Columbia,  or  to  the  Sandwich  Islands. 

In  Nicaragua,  it  has  been  proposed  to  improve  the  navigation  of  the 
San  Juan  River,  fr^m  its  mouth  on  the  Mosquito  coast,  to  the  great 
Lake  of  Nicaragua  'ti!;  i  which  it  flows,  or  to  cut  a  canal  from  the 
Atlantic  to  that  lake,  whence  another  canal  should  be  made  to  the 
Pacific.  Now,  without  enumerating  the  many  other  obstacles  to  this 
plan,  any  one  of  thom  sufficient  to  defeat  it,  were  all  things  besides  favor- 
able, it  may  be  imply  stated,  that  one  mile  of  tunnel  end  two  of  very 
deep  cutting  t'lirough  volcanic  rock,  in  addition  to  man)  locks,  will  be 
required  in  the  fifteen  miles,  which,  by  the  shortest  and  least  difficult 
route,  must  be  passed  between  the  lake  and  the  Pacific.  Is  such  a  work 
practicable  1 

The  Isthmus  of  Panama  remains  to  be  considered.  From  re''"nt  and 
minute  surveys,  it  has  been  proved  that  no  obstacles  to  a  ship-canal  are 
presented  by  the  surface  of  this  isthmus,  equal  to  those  which  have  been 


43 


PROJECTS   FOR   CANALS   UNITING    THE   TWO   OCEANS. 


::'i-| 


surmounted,  in  many  instances  of  a  similar  nature,  in  Europe  and  in  the 
United  States.  On  the  other  hand,  the  country  contains  only  a  few 
inhabitants  of  the  most  wretched  description,  from  whose  assistance  in 
the  work  no  advantage  in  any  way  could  be  derived ;  so  that  all  the 
laborers,  with  all  their  clothes,  provisions,  and  tools,  must  be  transported 
thither  from  a  distance.  The  heat  is  at  all  times  intense,  and  the  wet 
season  continues  during  eight  months  of  the  year ;  the  rains  in  July, 
August,  September,  and  October,  being  incessant,  and  heavier,  perhaps, 
than  in  any  other  part  of  the  world.  As  to  salubrity,  there  is  a  difl'er- 
ence  of  opinion ;  but  it  is  scarcely  possible  that  the  extremes  of  heat  and 
dampness,  which  are  there  combined,  could  be  otherwise  than  deleterious 
to  persons  from  Europe,  or  from  the  Northern  States  of  the  American 
Union,  by  whom  the  labor  of  cutting  a  canal  must  be  performed,  unless, 
indeed,  it  should  be  judged  proper  to  employ  negroes  from  the  West 
Indies  on  the  work. 

It  seems,  therefore,  that  a  canal  is  practicable  across  the  Isthmus  of 
Panama :  there  is,  however,  not  the  slightest  probability  that  it  will  be 
made  during  this  century,  if  ever ;  the  commercial  utility  of  such  a 
communication  being  scarcely  sufficient  to  warrant  the  enormous  ex- 
penses of  its  construction  and  maintenance.  Ships  from  Europe  or  the 
United  States,  bound  for  the  west  coasts  of  America,  or  the  North 
Pacific,  or  China,  would  probably  pass  through  it,  unless  the  tolls  should 
be  too  heavy ;  but  those  returning  from  China  would  pursue  the  route 
around  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  which  would  be,  in  all  respects,  more 
advantageous  for  them,  as  well  as  for  vessels  sailing  between  the  Atlantic 
coasts  and  India,  or  Australia.  Not  only  is  the  direct  distance  from  South 
Asia  and  Australia  to  the  Atlantic  coasts  greater  by  way  of  the  Pacific, 
but  vessels  taking  that  route  must  deviate  very  far  from  the  direct  course, 
in  order  to  avoid  the  trade  winds,  which  blow  constantly  westward  over 
the  intertropical  parts  of  the  Pacific. 

As  regards  political  effects,  it  may  be  assumed  as  certain,  that,  should 
the  canal  be  made  by  any  company  or  nation  whatsoever,  it  will,  in 
time,  notwithstanding  any  precautions  by  treaty  or  otherwise,  become 
the  property  of  the  greatest  naval  power,  which  will  derive  a  vast  increase 
of  political  strength  from  the  possession. 


IIS 


M7'> 


■>(>  ;'■'.       ".:    ,1  ' 


Il 


5  Isthmus  of 
lat  it  will  be 
ty  of  such  a 
enormous  ex- 
Burope  or  the 
or  the  North 
16  tolls  should 
sue  the  route 
respects,  more 
n  the  Atlantic 
ce  from  South 
if  the  Pacific, 
direct  course, 
westward  over 


HISTORY 


OF 


OREGON    AND    CALIFORNIA, 


AND 


THE  OTHER  COUNTRIES 


ON   THE 


NORTH-WEST  COAST  OF  NORTH  AMERICA. 


nn 


HISTORY 


o* 


OREGON    AND    CALIFORNIA, 


ETC. 


.T'\, 


CHAPTER   I. 


To  1543. 


Preliminary  Observationa  —  Eftbrts  of  the  Spaniards  to  diacoTor  Western  Passages 
to  India  —  Successive  Discoveries  of  the  West  Indies,  the  North  American 
Continent,  the  Eastern  Passage  to  India,  Brazil,  and  the  Pacific  Ocean  —  Search 
for  a  navigable  Passage  connecting  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific  Oceans  —  Sup- 
posed Discovery  of  such  a  Passage,  called  the  Strait  of  Anion — Discovery  of 
Magellan's  Strait  and  the  Western  Passage  to  India — Conquest  of  Mexico  by 
Cortes,  who  endeavors  to  discover  new  Countries  farther  north-west  —  Voyages 
of  Maldonado,  Hurtado  de  Mendoza,  Gr^jalva,  and  Becerra — Discovery  of  Cali- 
fornia—  Expedition  of  Cortes  to  California  —  Pretended  Discoveries  of  Friar 
Marcos  de  Niza  —  Voyages  of  Ulloa,  Alarcon,  and  Cabrillo  —  Expeditions  of 
Coronado  and  Soto  —  The  Spaniards  desist  from  their  Efforts  to  explore  the  North- 
west Coasts  of  America. 

The  western  coasts  of  North  America  were  first  explored  by  the 
Spaniards,  in  the  sixteenth  century.  In  order  to  convey  a  clear  idea 
of  the  circumstances  which  led  to  their  discovery,  as  well  as  of  the 
claims  and  pretensions  based  upon  it,  a  general  view  will  be  here 
presented  of  the  proceedings  and  objects  of  Europeans  with  regard  to 
the  New  World,  from  the  period  when  its  existence  was  ascertained, 
to  that  in  which  the  exploration  of  its  north-west  coasts  was  begun. 

The  islands  found  by  Columbus,  in  his  voyage  across  the  Atlantic 
in  1492,  were  supposed  to  be  situated  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of 
Asia,  the  eastern  hmits  of  which  were  then  unknown ;  and  their  dis- 
covery was  the  result  of  endeavors  to  reach,  by  a  western  course,  the 
shores  of  India,  from  which  Europe  chiefly  derived  its  gold,  silks,  pre- 
cious stones,  and  spices,  and  those  of  China  and  Japan,  of  the  wealth 
of  which  empires  vague  accounts  had  been  brought  by  travellers. 

With  the  same  objects  in  view,  the  Portuguese  had  been  long 
engaged  in  exploring  the  Atlantic  coast  of  Africa  southward  and 
eastward,  in  search  of  some  channel  or  sea,  by  which  their  ships 


I  !!   ' 


U 


TREATY  OF  PARTITION  OF  THE  OCEAN. 


[1494. 


:'li 


ii 


might  enter  the  Indian  Ocean ;  being  encouraged  in  their  exertions 
by  the  Bull  of  Pope  Nicholas  V.,  issued  in  1454,  assuring  to  them 
the  exclusive  rights  of  navigation,  trade,  fishery,  and  conquest,  in  all 
seas  and  countries  which  they  might  find  in  that  course,  not  before 
occupied  by  a  Christian  prince  or  people.  They  had,  however,  not 
reached  the  southern  extremity  of  Africa  when  Columbus  returned 
from  his  first  voyage  across  the  Atlantic ;  and,  immediately  after- 
wards, the  united  Spanish  sovereigns  procured  from  Pope  Alex- 
ander VI.  Bulls,  granting  to  them  and  their  successors,  forever, 
exclusive  privileges  with  regard  to  the  seas  and  countries  which 
might  be  found  by  navigating  towards  the  west,  similar  to  those 
conferred  on  the  Portuguese,  as  to  seas  and  countries  east  of  the 
Atlantic. 

Upon  these  extraordinary  commissions,  as  bases,  was  founded  the 
celebrated  Treaty  of  Partition  of  the  Ocean,  concluded  at  Torde- 
sillas,  on  the  7th  of  June,  1494,  between  the  sovereigns  of  Spain 
and  the  king  of  Portugal,  then  the  greatest  maritime  powers  of 
Europe.  By  this  treaty,  the  Portuguese  were  to  enjoy  and  possess 
the  exclusive  rights  of  discovery,  trade,  conquest,  and  dominion,  in 
all  the  seas  and  territories  not  previously  belonging  to  a  Christian 
piince  or  people,  eas^  of  a  meridian  line  passing  three  hundred  and 
seventy  leagues  west  of  the  Cape  Verd  Islands ;  and  the  Spaniards 
were  to  possess  the  same  rights,  in  all  seas  and  all  pagan  lands 
west  of  that  line ;  no  provision  being  made  for  the  contingency 
of  the  meeting  of  the  parties  proceeding  in  these  opposite  direc- 
tions. The  two  nations  having  thus,  under  the  piaranty  of  the 
highest  authority  recognized  in  Europe,  settled  the  conditions  on 
which  they  were  to  appropriate  to  themselves,  respectively,  neatly 
all  the  sea  and  nearly  all  the  land  on  tho  globe,  without  regard  for 
the  wishes  or  claims  of  any  other  people,  each  continued  its  search 
for  a  navigable  passage  to  India,  generally,  though  not  always, 
within  the  limits  assigned  to  it. 

In  this  search  the  Portuguese  vere  soon  successful ;  for,  in  1499, 
they  sailed  around  the  southern  extremity  of  Africa,  t6  India,  where 
they  established  their  dominion  or  their  influence  over  many  of 
those  regions.  They  also,  about  the  same  time,  obtamed  possession 
of  Brazil,  the  coasts  of  which  were  found  to  extend  east  of  the 
meridian  of  partition,  to  the  great  regret  and  constant  annoyance 
of  the  Spaniards,  who  had  hoped,  by  the  treaty  of  1494,  to  secure 
to  themselves  the ,  exclusive  sovereignty  of  all  the  countries  on  the 
western  side  of  the  Atlantic. 


5:.<r^"i 


1500.] 


TLE    STRAIT    OF    ANIAM. 


47 


The  English,  however,  disregarding  the  Papal  prohibitions,  imme- 
diately entered  the  career  of  discovery  in  the  west ;  and,  under  iheir 
flag,  John  Cabot,  first  of  all  Europeans,  reached  the  American  conti- 
nent in  1497.  They  were  soon  followed  by  the  French,  who,  during 
the  early  part  of  the  sixteenth  century,  made  numerous  expeditions 
across  the  Atlantic ;  and  the  Portuguese,  notwithstanding  the  restric- 
tions of  the  treaty  of  partition,  also  endeavored  to  find  a  passage  to 
India  in  the  same  direction.  It  was,  indeed,  long  believed  that 
Gaspar  Cortereal,  a  Portuguese  navigator,  who  explored  the  coasts 
of  Labrador  in  1499  and  1500,  had  actually  sailed  through  a  narrow 
channel,  named  by  him  the  Strait  ofAnian,*  westward  from  the 
Atlantic,  nearly  in  the  course  of  the  58th  parallel  of  latitude,  into 
•.nother  great  sea,  communicating  with  the  Indian  Ocean.  This 
channel  may  have  been  the  same,  now  called  Hudson's  Strait,  con- 
necting the  Atlantic  with  Hudson's  Bay,  the  discovery  of  which  is 
generally  attributed  to  Sebastian  Cabot ;  it  was  certainly  known  as 
the  Strait  of  Labrador  long  before  its  entrance  by  the  navigator 
whose  name  it  bears.  The  belief  in  the  existence  of  such  a  north- 
west passage  to  India,  joining  the  Atlantic  in  the  position  assigned 
to  the  mouih  of  Cortereal's  Strait  of  Anian,  caused  many  voyages 
to  be  made  to  the  coasts  of  northern  America,  on  both  sides,  during 
the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries,  and  many  false  reports  to 
be  circulated  of  the  discovery  of  the  desired  channel ;  the  effects  of 
which  reports,  in  promoting  the  exploration  of  those  coasts,  will 
be  hereafter  shown.    ■--•■■<-.■        i  ;  :  ?    t 


*  "  It  is  stated  in  several  collections  of  voyages,  that  the  name  o{£nian  was  given 
to  the  strait  supposed  to  have  been  discovered  by  Gaspar  Cortereal,  in  honor  of  two 
brotheriJ,  who  accompanied  him  ;  but  there  are  no  grounds  for  such  a  su^jposition.  ^  " 
In  the  earliest  maps,  Jnia  is  marked  aa  the  name  of  the  north- westernmost  part  of 
America.  Jlni,  in  the  Japanese  language,  is  said  to  signify  brother  ;  hence,  probably, 
the  mistake."  (Chronological  History  of  Voyages  in  the  Arctic  Regions,  by  John 
Barrow,  page  45.)  —  In  an  article  on  the  subject  of  a  north-west  passage,  in  the 
London  Quarterly  Review  for  October,  1816,  supposed  to  have  been  written  by 
Barrow,  it  is  asserted  that  Cortereal  "  named  the  Strait  of  Anian,  not  in  honor 
of  two  brothers  who  accompanied  him,  but  because  he  deemed  it  to  be  the  eastern 
extremity  of  a  strait  whose  icestern  end,  opening  into  the  Pacific,  had  idready  received 
that  name."  The  value  of  this  assertion  may  be  estimated  from  the  fact,  that 
the  ocean  on  the  western  side  of  America  was  not  discovered  by  Europeans  until 
thirteen  years  after  Cortereal's  voyage  and  death.  The  review  abounds  in  similar 
errors. 

Many  of  the  most  important  errors  in  Barrow's  Chronological  History  have  been 
exposed  by  Mr.  R.  Diddle,  in  his  admirable  Memoir  of  Sebastian  Cabot,  to  which  the 
reader  is  referred  for  the  most  exact  accounts,  so  far  as  they  can  be  obtained,  of  these 
early  voyages  to  the  north-west  coasts  of  the  Atlantic.  A  concise  and  clear  view  of 
the  results  of  these  voyages  will  be  found  in  the  first  chapter  of  Bancroft's  History 
of  the  United  States. 


S  V-' 


48 


DISCOVERT   OF   TRC    PACiriO    OCEAN. 


[1513. 


The  Sptniards  were,  in  the  mean  time,  assiduously  engaged  in 
planting  colonies  in  the  countries  newly  found  by  them  bnyond  the 
Atlantic,  to  which  they  gave  the  collective  name  of  West  Indies,* 
and  in  exploring  the  coasts  in  the  vicinity  of  the  islands  first  dis- 
covered, which  were  soon  asioertained  to  be  the  borders  of  a  vast 
continent.  How  fm  soutii  this  continent  extended,  and  whether  it 
was  united,  in  the  noxih,  with  Asia,  ar  with  the  territories  seen  in  that 
direction  by  the  Kagiii  i  and  the  Port^Tuese,  remained  to  he  deter- 
mined; and,  with  those  r^Isjor*,  th«M*J?aniard8  persevered  in  their 
examinations,  in  which  they  were,  raoreover,  encouraged  by  the 
coi^«itant  as^sirance.'  of  the  natives  of  the  coasts  and  islands, 
respf  oting  the  existence  of  a  great  sea,  and  rich  and  powerful 
nations,  towards  the  srrtting  sun. 

In  151.'?,  tliin  great  sea  was  discovered,  near  the  spot  where 
Panama  now  stands,  by  Vn^m  Kuliea  de  Balboa,  the  governor  of 
the  Spanis'lt  culony  of  Dan..*'..  It  was  naturally  supposed  to  be 
the  So^ithera  Ocean,  wiuch  bathed  the  shores  of  India ;  and,  as  its 
proximity  to  the  Atlantic  was  at  the  same  time  ascertained,  encour- 
agement was  afforded  for  the  hope  that  the  two  great  waters  would 
be  found  connected  in  a  position  the  most  favorable  for  navigation 
between  Europe  and  Asia.  The  examinations  of  the  Spaniards 
were,  in  consecjuence,  directed  particularly  to  the  coasts  of  the 
Isthmus  of  Darien,  and  were  conducted  with  great  zeal  and  perse- 
verance, until  the  entire  separation  of  the  two  oceans  by  land,  in 
that  quarter,  had  been  proved.  These  researches  were,  l^owever, 
also  continued  both  north  and  south  of  the  isthmus,  until,  at  length, 
in  1520,  Fernando  Magalhaens,  or  Magellan,  a  Portuguese,  in  the 
naval  service  of  Spain,  discovered  nnd  sailed  through  the  strait  now 
bearing  his  name,  into  the  sea  found  by  Balboa,  over  which  he 
pursued  his  voyage  westward  to  India. 

The  great  geographical  question,  as  to  the  circumnavigation  of 
the  globe,  was  thus  solved,  though  not  in  a  manner  entirely  satisfac- 
tory to  the  Spaniards.     The  Strait  of  Magellan  was  intricate,  and 

•  The  name  America  was  first  applied  to  the  New  World  in  a  work  entitled  «♦  Comw- 
grapliia  Instruction  4^.,  insuper  quatuor  Americi  Vespudi  JVavigationes,"  written  by 
Martin  Waldseemuller,  under  the  assumed  name  of  HyUuomylus,  and  printed  at  Saint 
Die,  in  Lorraine,  in  1507.  This  has  been  clearly  proved  by  Humboldt,  in  his  admi- 
rable "  Examen  Critique  de  I'Histoire  de  la  Geographie  du  Mmveau  Continent,"  in 
which  many  other  interesting  questions  relating  to  the  discovery  of  the  New  World 
are  also  discnssed  and  satisfactorily  determined.  The  Spaniards  carefully  avoided 
the  use  of  the  name  Jimerica  in  their  histories  and  official  documents,  in  not  one  of 
wfaioh,  anterinr  to  the  middle  of  the  last  century,  can  the  word  be  found. 


[1518. 

ngaged  in 
KRyond  the 
itt  Indies,^ 
1  firat  dis- 
of  a  vast 
whether  it 
een  in  that 
>  be  deter- 
id  in  their 
ed  by  the 
id  islands, 
1  powerful 

ipot  where 

[overnor  of 

)sed  to  be 

and,  as  its 

3d,  encour- 

iters  would 

navigation 

Spaniards 

ists  of  the 

and  perse- 

by  land,  in 

I,  l^owever, 

,  at  length, 

ise,  in  the 

strait  now 

which  he 

Kgation  of 
\y  satisfac- 
ricate,  and 

lied  "  Cotmuh 
['  written  by 
Wd  at  Saint 
|in  his  admi- 
tinmt"  in 
iNew  World 
ally  avoided 
.  not  one  of 


1518.] 


THE    SPANIARDS    AND    P0RTUGU£3£    IN   INDIA. 


49 


the  passige  through  it  was  attended  with  great  difficulties  and 
dangers ;  besides  which,  it  was  itself  almost  as  far  from  Europe  as 
India  by  the  eastern  route.  Other  and  more  direct  channels  of 
communication  between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Southern  Ocean  might, 
indeed,  be  discovered :  but  the  latter  sea  was  found  to  be  infinitely 
wider  than  had  been  supposed ;  and,  although  the  part  of  it  crossed 
by  Magellan  was  so  little  disturbed  by  storms  that  he  was  induced 
to  name  it  the  Pacific  Ocean,  yet  he  also  observed  that  the  winds 
blew  over  it  invariably  from  eastern  points.  These  circumstances 
depressed  the  hopes  of  the  Spaniards  with  respect  to  the  establish- 
ment of  their  power  in  Southern  Asia,  though  they  continued  their 
expeditions  to  that  part  of  the  world  by  way  of  Magellan's  Strait, 
and  their  search  for  new  passages  into  the  Pacific.  Their  expedi- 
tions to  India  brought  them  into  collision  with  the  Portuguese,* 
who  had  already  made  several  settlements  in  the  Molucca  Islands, 
and  had  obtained  from  the  Chinese,  in  151S,  the  possession,  under 
certain  qualifications,  of  the  important  port  of  Macao,  near  Canton  ; 
and  many  bloody  conflicts  took  place,  in  consequence,  between  the 
subjects  of  those  nations,  in  that  distant  quarter  of  the  world,  as 
well  as  many  angry  disputes  between  their  governments,  before  the 
questions  of  right  at  issue  could  be  settled. 

In  the  mean  time,  other  events  occurred,  which  consoled  the 
Spaniards  for  their  disappointments  with  regard  to  India,  and 
caused  them  to  direct  their  attention  more  particularly  to  the 
New    World. 

Before  the  period  of  the  departure  of  Magellan  on  his  expedi- 
tion, the  Spaniards  had,  in  fact,  derived  from  their  discoveries 
beyond  the  Atlantic  but  few  of  the  advantages  which  they  anti- 
cipated.     They   had   found   and    taken   possession   of  countries 

*  Spain  claimed  the  exclusive  navigation,  trade,  and  conquest,  westward,  to  the 
extremity  of  the  peninsula  of  Malacca,  so  as  to  include  all  the  Molucca  Islands  and 
China;  while  the  Portuguese  insisted  on  exercising  the  same  privileges,  without 
competition,  eastward  as  far  as  the  Ladrone  Islands ;  each  on  the  ground  that  the 
meridian  of  partition,  settled  with  regard  to  the  Atlantic,  in  141)4,  would,  if  continued 
un  the  other  side  of  the  globe,  pass  in  such  a  manner  as  to  place  the  portions  claimed 
by  itself  within  its  own  hemisphere.  The  question  was  discussed  between  the  two 
courts  directly,  and  by  their  commissioners  who  met  at  Badajos  in  1523,  but  without 
arriving  at  any  definite  arrangement.  At  length,  on  the  22d  of  April,  1529,  a  treaty 
was  concluded  at  Saragossa,  by  the  terms  of  which  the  king  of  Spain  sold  all  his  rights 
to  the  Moluccas  to  the  king  of  Portugal  for  350,000  ducats  of  gold,  ($3,080,000,) 
with  the  proviso  that  the  latter  might,  by  repaying  the  sum,  be  at  liberty  again  to 
urge  those  rights.  The  sum  was  never  repaid,  and  Spain  did  not  again  claim  the 
islands ;  though,  for  a  long  period  afterwards,  the  Spanish  empire  was  represented 
on  Spanish  maps  as  extending  westward  to  the  extremity  of  Malacca. 
7 


60 


MEXICO    C0N(IUI:RED   by    THC    SPANIARDS. 


[1522. 


\ 


It 


extensive,  rich  in  mines,  productive  in  soil,  and  delightful  in 
climate,  but  uncultivated,  and  thirily  peopled  by  savages,  wIm 
could  neither  by  gentle  nor  by  violent  means  bo  induced  to  labor 
regularly  for  others  or  for  themselves;  and,  although  the  want 
of  a  working  population  was  in  part  supplied  by  the  introduction 
of  negro  slaves  from  Africa,  there  was  little  prospect  that  Spain 
would  ever  be  much  benefited  by  these  distant  colonies.  While 
Magellan's  ships  were  on  their  western  route  to  India,  however, 
the  wealthy  and  powerful  empire  of  Mexico,  which  had  been 
discovered  in  1518  by  a  party  of  Spaniards  from  Cuba,  was 
conquered  by  Hernando  Cortes;  and  Spain  immediately  became 
the  richest  nation  of  Europe.  The  reports  of  the  brilliant  results 
of  this  conquest  drew  to  the  West  Indies  crowds  of  adventurers, 
all  eager  to  acquire  wealth  and  renown  by  similar  m*^  ans ;  who, 
uniting  in  bands,  under  daring  and  experienced  captains,  ranged 
through  both  the  western  continents,  seeking  mines  of  precious 
metals  to  work,  or  rich  nations  to  plunder.  In  this  manner 
Peru  was  subjugated  by  Pizarro  and  his  followers  before  1535; 
the  other  expeditions  were  fruitless,  as  respects  the  principal 
objects  in  view,  while,  in  the  course  of  them,  many  distant  shores 
and  interior  regions  were  explored,  which  would  otherwise,  perhaps, 
not  have  been  visited  for  centuries.  The  acts  of  these  demon 
heroes  are  recorded  with  minuteness  in  the  stirring  pages  of  the 
chronicles  of  their  day ;  and  curious  narratives  of  several  of  their 
expeditions,  written  by  persons  engaged  in  them,  have  been  pre- 
served by  the  assiduity  of  Spanish,  Italian,  English,  and  Dutch 
collectors  of  historical  tracts. 

The  desire  to  discover  new  passages  of  communication  for  vessels 
between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific  Oceans,  was  also  a  strong 
motive  for  the  expeditions  of  the  Spaniards  along  the  coasts  of  the 
New  World ;  and  no  one  pursued  this  search  with  more  zeal  and 
perseverance  than  Hernando  Cortes.  Scarcely  had  he  established 
the  authority  of  his  sovereign  in  Mexico,  than  he  commenced  the 
exploration  of  the  adjoining  seas  and  countries,  with  that  object, 
as  well  as  with  the  hope  of  finding  other  rich  nations  to  subdue ; 
and  in  such  enterprises  he  spent  a  grt.  portion  of  his  time  and 
resources,  during  his  residence  in  America.  In  prosecution  of  his 
plans,  chiefly,  the  long  and  in  most  places  narrow  territory, 
connecting  Mexico  with  the  southern  continent,  was  carefully 
examined,  until  it  had  been  ascertained  that  the  two  seas  were 
separated  by  land  throughout  the  whole  extent.     He,  at  the  same 


1528.] 


PLAN8    or    CORTES   TOH  rURTIIER   CONCIOESTS. 


51 


time,  employed  vessels  in  surveying  the  coasts  of  the  Mexican  Gulf, 
and  those  of  the  Atlantic,  farther  north ;  and  he  built  others  on  the 
Pacific  side,  for  similar  purposes,  two  of  which  ho  sent,  as  early  os 
1526,  to  the  East  Indies,  in  aid  of  the  armaments  despatched  thither 
from  Spain,  under  Loyasa.* 

The  first  expedition  made  by  the  Spaniards  along  the  Pacific 
coasts,  westward  from  Mexico,  was  conducted  by  Pedro  Nunez 
Maldonado.  Mue  of  the  officers  of  Cortes,  who  sailed  from  the 
mouth  of  tlio  River  of  Zacatula  in  July,  1523,  and  passed  nearly  six 
months  in  surveying  the  shores  between  that  point  and  the  mouth 
of  the  River  of  Santiago,  about  a  hundred  leagues  farther  north- 
west. The  territory  of  which  this  coast  formed  the  southern  border 
was  then  called  Xalisco ;  it  was  entirely  unknown  to  the  Europeans, 
and  was  inhabited  by  fierce  tribes  of  savages,  who  had  never  been 
subdicd  by  the  Mexicans."  Maldonado  brought  back  flattering 
accciunts  of  its  fertility,  and  of  the  abundance  of  precious  metals 
in  its  interior,  which  did  not  fail  to  excite  the  attention  of  his 
employer,  as  well  as  of  others  among  their  countrymen. 

Cort^'s  was  at  that  time  in  Spain,  whither  he  had  gone  in  1528, 
chiefly  with  the  object  of  obtaining  some  more  definite  rec<^nition 
of  his  powers  and  rights  in  the  New  World  than  had  been  hitherto 
granted.  He  was  received  at  Madrid  with  the  most  signal  honors 
by  his  sovereign,  the  celebrated  emperor  Charles  V. ;  and,  on  his 
return  to  Mexico,  he  carried  with  him  patents,  confirming  him 
as  captain-general  of  that  country,  then  called  New  Spain,  and 
creating  him  a  grandee  of  Castile,  with  the  title  of  Marquis  of  the 
Valley  of  Oaxaca ;  to  wh'jih  was  attached  the  possession  c'' vast  tracts 
of  country  in  America,  including  the  port  of  Tehuantepec,  on  the 
Pacific.  He  also  procured  from  the  emperor  a  capitulation,  or 
charter,  empowering  him  to  discover  and  conquer  any  islands  in  the 

•  The  accounts  of  the  early  Spanish  expeditions  of  discovery  on  the  North  Pacific 
side  of  America,  contained  in  the  present  chapter,  are  derived  from  —  the  published 
letters  of  Cortes,  and  a  number  of  letters  and  reports  from  him  and  other  Spanish 
commanders,  hitherto  unpublished,  copies  of  which,  made  from  the  originals  in 
Madrid,  were  kindly  placed  at  the  disposition  of  the  writer  by  W.  H.  Prescott,  of 
Boston,  the  accomplished  author  of  the  Histories  of  Ferdinand  and  Isabella,  and  of 
tlie  Conquest  of  Mexico  —  the  Historia  General  de  las  Indias,  by  Herrera — the 
Crnnica  de  Nueva  Espana,  by  Gomara  —  tlie  Historia  de  la  Conquista  de  Mexico, 
by  Bcrnal  Dias  —  the  Raccolte  de  Viaggi,  by  Ramusio  —  the  Collection  of  Voyages 
and  Discoveries,  by  Hakluyt  —  the  History  of  Voyages  in  the  Pacific,  by  Bu'/ney  — 
and  the  Introduction  to  the  Journal  of  the  Voyage  made,  in  1702,  by  Captains 
Galiano  and  Valdes,  in  the  Spanish  schooners  Sutil  and  Mexicana,  published  at 
Madrid,  by  order  of  the  government,  in  1802,  to  which  references  will  also  be  fre- 
quently made  in  the  succeeding  chapters. 


52 


mi'NO    DE    OCZMAN. 


[1530. 


Pacific,  or  other  countries  west  of  Mexico,  not  within  the  limits 
assigned  to  any  other  Spanish  governor ;  of  which  countries  he  and 
hie  heirs  forever  were  to  enjoy  the  government,  and  one  twelfth  of 
all  the  precious  metals,  pearls,  and  otiier  advantages  therefrom 
accruing,  on  condition  of  their  treating  the  natives  with  kindness, 
and  endeovoring  to  convert  them  to  the  Christian  faith.  The  politic 
Charles  did  not,  however,  intrust  such  extensive  powers  to  one  so 
capable  and  ambitious  as  Cortes,  without  at  the  same  time  providing 
certain  checks,  by  means  of  which  the  conqueror  of  Mexico  might 
be  effectually  prevented  from  using  his  faculties  for  any  other 
ends  than  enlarging  the  dominions  of  the  crown  of  Castile.  The 
expenses  of  all  his  expeditions  were  to  be  borne  by  himself ;  and 
he  could  do  little,  if  any  thing,  without  the  assent  of  the  Audiencia, 
or  Royal  Court  and  Board  of  Administration,  established  at  Mexico, 
the  members  of  which  were  chosen  from  among  his  most  bitter 
enemies. 

The  only  governor  in  the  New  World  with  whose  claims  Cortes 
might  have  been  supposed  to  interfere,  by  expeditions  westward 
from  Mexico,  was  Nuno  de  Guzman,  the  president  of  the  Audiencia, 
who  had  obtained  from  the  emperor  the  government  of  Panuco, 
the  country  on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  surrounding  the  spot  now 
occupied  by  the  town  of  Tampico,  and  also  that  of  Xalisco,  of 
which  he  had  received  accounts  from  Maldonado  and  other  adven- 
turers. This  person,  one  of  the  same  stamp  with  Pizarro  and 
Davila,  had  been  assiduously  engaged  in  undermining  the  authority 
and  influence  of  Cortes ;  and  no  sooner  did  he  learn  that  his  rival 
was  returning  to  Mexico  as  captajn-general,  than  he  assembled  all 
the  troops  under  his  command  in  the  capital,  and  marched  lor 
Xalisco,  where  he  remained  many  years,  subduing  the  country,  and 
exterminating  its  aboriginal  inhabitants. 

Cortes  thus,  on  his  arrival  in  Mexico  in  July,  1530,  found  himself 
deprived  of  the  means  not  only  of  making  expeditions  of  discov- 
ery, but  also  of  maintaining  his  authority  in  the  kingdom ;  and  he 
was  obliged  to  wait  two  years  before  he  could  send  a  single  vessel 
out  on  the  Pacific.  At  length,  by  the  middle  of  the  year  1532,  he 
had  two  ships  ready  for  sea,  which  he  determined  to  despatch  on  an 
exploratory  voyage,  along  the  western  coast,  whilst  the  others  were 
in  progress  of  construction  at  Tehuan  tepee. 

At  that  period,  the  whole  eastern  coast  of  the  American  contment 
had  been  explored,  but  imperfectly  by  European  navigators ;  though 
no  part  of  the  interior,  north  of  Mexico  and  the  countries  in  its 


im 


1532.] 


UNCEBTAIirrY   OP    ACCOUNTS    OF    OLD    VOTAGES. 


ntries  in  its 


im  '"fliate  vicinity,  was  known.  The  northernmost  points  occupied 
by  tlie  Spaniards  were,  —  on  the  Atlantic  side,  Panuco,  within  a  fvw 
miles  of  the  Mexican  Gulf,  —  and,  on  the  Pacific  side,  Culiacan,  which 
was  founded  by  Nuno  de  Guzman,  in  1530,  at  the  entrance  of  the 
Gulf  of  California.  Beyond  Culiacan,  towards  the  north  and  the 
west,  the  lands  and  the  seas  were  entirely  unexplored  ;  and  between 
that  place  and  the  civilized  portion  of  Mexico,  extended  a  wide 
space  of  uncuhivntod  country,  including  Xalisco,  which  was  called, 
by  the  Spaniards,  New  Galicia.  The  ports  occupied  by  the  Span- 
iards on  the  Pacific  side  of  Mexico,  were  Tehuantcpcc,  the  most 
eastern,  at  which  Cortes  had  his  arsenals  and  ship-yards ;  Acapulco, 
the  principal  place  of  trade,  and  tl.e  nearest  to  the  capital;  and 
Zacatula,  and  Aguatlan,  on  the  confines  of  Xalisco,  beyond  which 
the  coasts  were  little  known. 

Before  entering  upon  the  history  of  the  Spanish  discoveries  on 
the  North  Pacific  side  of  America,  it  should  be  observed,  that  the 
accounts  of  these  and  other  expeditions  by  sea,  made  at  that  period, 
which  have  descended  to  us,  are  very  obscure  and  inexact,  especially 
as  regards  geographical  positions ;  so  that  it  is  generally  difficult, 
and  often  impossible,  to  identify  places  by  means  of  the  descriptions 
given  in  them.  This  arises  partly  from  the  circumstance,  that  the 
accounts  were  nearly  all  written  by  priests,  clerks,  or  other  persons 
unacquainted  with  naval  matters,  who  paid  little  attention  to  lati- 
tudes, longitudes,  courses,  and  bearings,  and  were  unable  to  record 
them  properly ;  and  partly  from  the  imperfection  of  the  instruments 
then  employed  to  determine  the  altitudes  and  relative  distances  of 
the  heavenly  bodies,  which,  even  on  land,  and  under  the  most  favor- 
able conditions  of  the  atmosphere,  gave  results  far  from  accurate, 
and  were  entirely  useless  in  a  vessel  on  a  rough  sea,  or  in  cloudy 
weather.  This  uncertainty  as  to  the  positions  of  places  necessarily 
leads  to  confusion  respecting  their  names ;  and  we  accordingly  find, 
in  the  account  of  each  of  these  voyages  along  the  same  portion  of  the 
coast,  a  nomenclature  of  cnnes,  bays,  and  islands,  almost  entirely  dif- 
ferent from  that  contained  in  tha  narratives  of  all  the  other  voyages. 

The  expedition  of  discovery,  made,  by  order  of  Cortes,  to  the 
coasts  north-west  of  Mtvioo,  in  1532,  was  conducted  by  his  kins- 
man, Diego  Hurtado  de  Mendoza,  who  sailed  from  Tehuantepec  in 
July  of  that  year,  with  two  vessels,  one  commanded  by  himself,  the 
other  by  Juan  de  Mazuela.  In  the  instructions  drawn  up  by  Cortes, 
of  which  a  copy  has  been  preserved,  Mendoza  was  directed  to  sail 
within  sight  of  the  coast,  and,  at  all  convenient  places,  to  land,  and 


f  r   I 


14  voTAQEs  or  ryyvozk,  qrualva,  and  decerra.      [1532. 

communicato  with  th^  rintivo*  whom  ho  was  to  conciHntu  by  every 
nicaiiN  in  his  power.  S;i.>i:'d  he  fiiiil  a  country  which  Bccmed  to  bo 
rich,  or  inhabited  by  civihxed  persons,  ho  was  immediately  to  return, 
or  to  send  back  one  of  his  vesHeis,  with  the  news.*  Ilurtado  do 
Mendoza  accordingly  proceeded  slowly  along  the  shore  of  the 
continent,  as  fur  north-west  as  the  iii7th  degree  of  latitude,  where, 
finding  his  crew  mutinous,  he  sent  back  one  of  his  vessels,  with 
the  greater  part  of  his  men,  and  continued  the  voyage,  with  a  smah 
crew,  in  the  other.  The  vessel  sent  back  reached  Culiacan  River 
in  great  distress,  and  was  there  deserted  by  nearly  all  her  men.  Her 
commander  then  endeavored,  with  the  remainder  of  his  crew,  to 
carry  her  to  Aca[)ulco :  but  she  was  stranded  at  the  mouth  of  the 
River  of  Vanderas,  near  the  point  now  called  Capo  Corrientes,  and 
all  on  board,  with  the  exception  of  three,  were  put  to  death  by  the 
natives  of  the  country,  after  which  the  vessel  was  seized  and  plun- 
dered by  Nuno  do  Guzman.  As  to  the  vessel  in  which  Mendoza 
continued  his  voyage,  a  vague  account  was  received,  that  she  had 
been  thrown  on  the  coast  far  north,  and  that  all  her  crew  had 
perished. 

Cortes  did  not  receive  the  news  of  the  loss  of  the  vessel  which 
had  been  sent  back  by  Hurtado  do  Mendoza  until  the  middle 
of  the  following  yerr;  and  he  then  immediately  despatched  two 
ships  from  Tehuan.epec,  in  search  of  the  other  vessel,  under  the 
command,  respectivt  ly,  of  Hernando  Grijalva  and  Diego  Becerra. 
These  ships  left  the  port  together,  on  the  30th  of  September, 
1533,  but  were  soon  after  separated.  Grijalva,  going  far  oiit, 
discovered  a  group  of  islands  situated  about  fifty  leagues  from 
the  coast,  named  by  him  Islarids  of  St.  Thomas,  (the  same  now 
called  the  Revillagigedo  Islands,)  where  he  remained  until  the 
following  spring,  and  then  returned  to  Acapulco,  without  having 
seen  any  new  part  of  the  continent.  Becerra,  with  the  other  ship, 
took  his  course  north-westward  along  the  shore  of  Xalisco,  near 
which  his  crew  mutinied,  and  he  was  murdered  by  the  pilot, 
Fortuno  Ximenes.  The  mutineers,  under  the  command  of  the 
pilot,  then  steered  directly  west  from  the  main-land,  and  soon 
reached  a  coast  not  before  known,  on  which  they  landed,  after 
anchoring  their  ship  in  a  small  bay,  near  the  23d  degree  of  latitude. 
There,  more  than  twenty  of  their  number,  including  Ximenes,  were 


•  Herrera,  Decade  v.  book  vii.  —  Manuscript  letters  and  memorials  from  CotIAb  to 
the  emperor,  in  1339  and  1540 ;  and  from  Nuiio  de  Guzman,  in  1535  and  1540. 


1535.] 


CORTCS  LANDS  IN  CALirOHNIA. 


65 


;nes,  were 


killed  by  the  natives ;  the  survivors  succeeded  in  carrying  the  vessel 
(>v(  r  lo  the  little  harbor  uf  Chiuuictlu,  in  Xalisco,  where  she  also 
was  Hoized  by  Nunc  do   Guzman. 

These  attempts  of  Cortes  to  make  discoveries  in  the  north-west, 
had,  in  the  mean  time,  excited  NuHo  de  Guzman  to  cflbrts  with  the 
same  object ;  and  he  had  sent  several  parties  of  men  in  that  direc- 
tion, one  of  which  appears  to  have  traced  the  western  shore  of  the 
continent  as  far  as  the  mouth  of  the  river  now  called  the  Colorado, 
and  to  have  first  brought  accounts  of  rich  and  populous  countries 
and  splendid  cities  in  the  interior.  Guzman  had  also  received 
lar^'o  accessions  to  his  forces  from  Mexico,  and  was  making  many 
settlements,  one  of  which  soon  prospered,  and  became,  in  time, 
the  city  of  Guadalaxara,  the  second  in  size  in  New  Spain. 

When  Cortes  became  assured  of  the  seizure  of  his  vessels  by 
Guzmun,  he  addressed  a  comi)laint  on  tlie  subject  to  the  Audiencia ; 
whose  decision  being,  however,  not  so  determinate  in  his  favor  as 
he  wished,  he  assembled  a  large  body  of  troops,  and  marched  with 
them  to  Chiametla,  where  ho  also  ordered  three  vessels  to  be  sent 
from  Tehuantepec.  On  the  approach  of  these  forces,  Guzman 
advanced  to  meet  them,  but  no  action  ensued ;  and  Cort6s,  having 
been  joined  at  Chiametla  by  his  vessels,  embarked  in  them,  with  a 
portion  of  his  men,  and  set  sail  for  the  new  country,  found  by 
Ximenes  in  the  west,  which  was  said  to  abound  in  the  finest  pearls. 
On  the  3d  of  May,  1535,  the  day  of  the  Invention  of  the  Holy 
Cross,  according  to  the  Roman  Catholic  calendar,  the  squadron 
anchored  in  the  bay,  on  the  shore  of  which  the  murderers  of 
Becerra  had  met  their  fate  in  the  preceding  year ;  and,  in  honor  of 
the  day,  the  name  of  Santa  Cruz  was  bestowed  on  the  place,  of 
which  possession  was  solemnly  taken  for  the   Spanish  sovereign. 

The  country  thus  claimed  by  Cortes  for  Spain,  was  the  south-east 
part  of  the  great  peninsula,  which  projects  from  the  American  con- 
tinent on  the  Pacific  side,  in  nearly  the  same  direction,  and  between 
nearly  the  same  parallels  of  latitude,  as  that  of  Florida  on  the 
Atlantic  side.  It  soon  after  received  the  name  of  California, 
respecting  the  origin  and  meaning  of  which,  many  speculations  — 
none  of  them  satisfactory  or  even  ingenious  —  have  been  offered. 
The  bay  called  Santa  Cruz  by  Cortes  was  probably  the  same  now 
known  as  Port  La  Paz,  about  r.  Iiv^ndred  miles  from  the  Pacific, 
near  the  24th  degree  of  latitude ;  though  some  accounts  place 
it  in  the  immediate  vicinity  of  the  southernmost  point  of  the 
peninsula. 


56 


COATES    SUPERSEDED   BY    MENDOZA. 


[1537. 


'   5, 


.  On  the  shore  of  this  bay,  surrounded  by  bare  mountains  of  rock, 
arid  and  forbidding  in  appearance,  though  not  more  so  than  the 
sandy  waste  about  Vera  Cruz,  Cortes  landed  with  a  hundred  and 
thirty  men  and  forty  horses,  and  then  sent  back  two  of  his  vessels  to 
Chiametla,  to  bring  over  the  remainder  of  the  forces;  hoping  to 
find,  in  the  interior  of  the  new  country,  another  Mexico,  in  the 
conquest  of  which  he  might  employ  his  powerful  energies.  The 
vessels  soon  reappeared,  with  a  portion  of  the  troops,  and  were 
again  despatched  to  the  Mexican  coast,  from  which  only  one  of 
them  returned,  the  other  having  been  wrecked  on  her  way.  Cortes 
thereupon  embarked,  with  seventy  ni^n,  for  Xalisco,  from  which  he 
came  back,  after  encountering  the  greatest  dangers,  just  in  time 
to  prevent  the  total  destruction  by  famine  of  those  left  at  Santa 
Cruz. 

In  these  operations,  more  than  a  year  was  consumed,  without 
obtaining  any  promise  of  advantage.  The  new  country,  so  far  as  it 
had  been  explored,  was  utterly  barren,  and,  except  that  a  few  pearls 
were  found  on  the  coast,  destitute  of  all  attraction  for  the  Spaniards. 
The  officers  of  the  expedition  were  discontented :  of  the  men,  a 
number  had  died  from  want  and  disease ;  the  others  were 
mutinous,  and  cursed  "Cortes,  his  island,  his  bay,  and  his  dis- 
covery." * 

Meanwhile  his  wife,  becoming  alarmed  by  the  reports  of  the  ill 
success  of  the  expedition,  which  had  reached  Mexico,  sent  a  vessel 
to  Santa  Cruz,  with  letters  entreating  his  immediate  return ;  and  he, 
at  the  same  time,  learned  that  he  had  been  superseded  in  the 
government  of  New  Spain  by  Don  Antonio  de  Mendoza,  a  noble- 
man of  Iiigh  rank  and  character,  who  had  already  made  his 
entrance  into  the  capital  as  viceroy. 

The  removal  of  Cortes  from  the  government  of  the  country  which 
had,  by  his  means,  been  added  :  >  s"^  dominions  of  Spain,  was  a 
heavy  blow;  particularly  as  hew  !=,.•?  that  moment,  much  embar- 
rassed from  want  of  funds,  his  private  property  having  been  seriously 
injured  by  the  expenses  of  his  recent  expeditions,  from  which  no 
advantage  had  been  obtained.  He  was,  in  consequence,  obliged  to 
return  to  Mexico,  where  he  arrived  ir^  the  beginning  of  1537,  and, 
soon  after,  to  recall  from  Santa  Cruz  his  lieutenant,  Francisco  de 
Ulloa,  with  the  forces  which  had  been  left  there ;  and,  not  being 
able,  at  the  time,  to  employ  his  vessels,  he  sent  two  of  them,  under 
Grijalva,  to  Peru,  laden  with  arms,  ammunition,  and  provisions,  in 

*  Bernal  Dias,  chap.  199. 


1527.] 


RAMBLES    OF    CABEZA-VACA. 


57 


aid  of  his  friend  Francisco  Pizarro,  who  was  then  in  great  difficulties, 
from  an  extensive  insurrection  of  the  natives.* 

Cortes,  nevertheless,  still  claimed  the  right,  in  virtue  of  his 
capitulation  with  the  sovereign,  and  as  admiral  of  the  South  Sea, 
to  make  expeditions  on  that  ocean  for  his  own  benefit;  and  he 
resolved  to  prosecute  the  discovery  of  California,  by  which  he 
still  expected  to  retrieve  his  fortunes,  so  soon  as  he  could  obtain  the 
requisite  funds.  The  advancement  of  this  claim,  however,  brought 
him  into  collision  with  the  new  viceroy,  who  was  an  enlightened 
and  determined  man,  and  who  had  likewise  become  interested  in  the 
exploration  of  the  regions  north-west  of  Mexico,  by  the  accounts  of 
some  persons  recently  arrived  from  that  quarter ;  and  a  violent  con- 
troversy ensued  between  the  two  chiefs,  which  lasted  until  the 
conqueror  quitted  Mexico. 

The  persons  from  whom  the  viceroy  Mendoza  received  this 
information  respecting  the  territories  north-west  of  Mexico,  were 
Alvaro  Nunez  de  Cabeza-Vaca,  two  other  Spaniards,  and  a  negro  or 
Moor.  They  had  landed,  in  1527,  near  Tampa  Bay,  in  the 
peninsula  of  Florida,  among  the  adventurers  who  invaded  that 
country  under  Panfilo  Narvaez,  in  search  of  mines  and  plunder; 
and,  after  the  destruction  of  their  comrades  by  shipwreck,  starvation, 
and  the  arrows  of  the  Indians,  they  had  wandered  for  nine  years 
through  forests  and  deserts,  until  they  reached  Culiacan,  whence 
they  were  sent  on  to  Mexico.  Of  their  route,  it  is.wipossible  to 
form  any  exact  idea  from  the  narrative  published  by  Cabeza-Vaca : 
he  had  seen  no  signs  of  wealth  or  civilization  in  the  regions  which 
he  had  traversed ;  but  he  had,  in  many  places,  received  from  the 
natives  accounts  of  rich  and  populous  countries,  inhabited  by 
civilized  people,  situated  farther  nortii-west ;  and  the  viceroy,  after 
hearing  these  accounts,  thought  proper  to  endeavor  to  ascertain  the 


*  A  long  account  of  the  adventures  of  Cortes,  in  his  Californian  expedition,  may 
be  found  in  Herrera,  Decade  viii.  book  viii.  chap.  ix.  and  x.  The  descriptions  of 
the  localities  given  by  Herrera,  and  other  Iiistorians,  are,  however,  so  vague,  that  it  iit 
impossible  to  trace  the  movements  of  the  Spaniards  with  exactness ;  and  the  events 
related  are  unimportant,  being  merely  details  of  disasters,  such  as  might  have 
occurred  to  ordinary  men,  engaged  in  ordinary  enterprises.  Those  who  take  interest 
in  every  thing  connected  with  Cortes,  —  and  the  number  of  such  must  doubtless  be 
greatly  increased,  since  the  publication  of  Mr.  Prescott's  History  of  the  Conquest  of 
Mexico,  —  may  obtain  explanations,  as  to  the  events  of  this  expedition,  from  the 
Introduction  to  the  Journal  of  Galiano  and  Valdes,  and  from  the  first  volume  of 
Burney's  History  of  Voyages  in  the  Pacific  ;  but  they  should  avoid  the  account 
given  by  Fleurieu,  in  his  Introduction  to  the  Journal  of  Marchand's  Voyage,  which 
onlv  renders  confusion  worse  confounded. 

8 


'a 


ki  'in 


•''is 


II 


1^;  .        ULLOA    DISCOVERS   THE    WEST    COAST    OF    CALIFORNIA.    [1539. 

truth  of  them.  For  this  purpose  he  collected  a  band  of  fifty  horse- 
men, who  werfe  to  be  commanded  by  Dorantes,  one  of  the  compan- 
ions of  Cabeza-Vaca;  but,  that  plan  being  overthrown  by  some 
circumstance,  he  was  induced,  by  the  representations  of  his  friend, 
the  celebrated  Bartolome  de  las  Casas,  to  depute  two  friars  to  make 
the  exploration,  with  the  view  of  preserving  the  inhabitants  of  the 
countries  visited,  from  the  violence  to  which  military  men  would  not 
fail  to  resort,  if  there  should  be  occasion,  for  the  gratification  of 
their  cupidity.  The  friars,  Marcos  de  Niza,  provincial  of  the 
Franciscan  order  in  Mexico,  and  Honorato,  accompanied  by  the 
negro  or  Moor,  Estavanico,  who  had  crossed  the  continent  with 
Cabeza-Vaca,  accordingly  set  out  from  Culiacan,  on  the  7th  of  March, 
1539,  in  search  of  the  rich  countries  reported  to  lie  in  the  north-west. 

Soon  after  the  departure  of  the  friars,  the  last  expedition  made 
by  order  of  Cortes  was  begun.*  It  was  commanded  by  Francisco 
de  Ulloa,  who  sailed  from  Acapulco  on  the  8th  of  July,  1539,  with 
three  vessels,  well  manned  and  equipped,  and  took  his  course  for 
California.  One  of  the  vessels  was  driven  ashore  in  a  storm  near 
Culiacan :  with  the  others  Ulloa  proceeded  to  the  Bay  of  Santa 
Cruz,  and  thence  in  a  few  days  departed  to  survey  the  coasts 
towards  the  north-east.  In  this  occupation  the  ships  were  engaged 
until  the  18th  of  October,  when  Ulloa  returned  to  Santa  Cruz, 
having  in  the  mean  time  completely  examined  both  shores  of  the 
great  gulf  which  separates  California  from  the  main  land  on  the 
east,  and  ascertained  the  fact  of  the  junction  of  the  two  territories, 
near  the  32d  degree  of  latitude,  though  he  failed  to  discover  the 
Colorado  River,  which  enters  the  gulf  at  its  northern  extremity. 
This  gulf  was  named,  by  Ulloa,  the  Sea  of  Cortes ;  but  it  is  gener- 
ally distinguished,  on  Spanish  maps,  as  the  Vermilion  Sea,  (Mar 
Vermejo,)  and,  in  those  of  other  nations,  as  the  Gulf  of  California. 

On  the  29th  of  October,  Ulloa  again  sailed  from  Santa  Cruz,  in 
order  to  examine  the  coasts  farther  west,  and  having  rounded  the 
point  now  called  Cape  San  Lucas,  which  forms  the  southern 
extremity  of  California,  he  pursued  his  voyage  along  the  coast 
towards  the  north.  In  this  direction  the  Spaniards  proceeded 
slowly,  often  landing  and  fighting  with  the  natives,  and  generally 
opposed  by  violent  storms  from  the  north-west,  until  the  end  of 
January,  1540,  when  they  had  reached  an  island  near  the  coast, 
under  the  28th  parallel  of  latitude,  which  they  named  the  Isle  of 

*  See  Narrative  of  Francisco  Preciado,  one  of  the  officers  of  the  Santa  Agueda,  in 
Rainusio,  vol.  iii.  p.  283,  and  in  Hakluyt,  vol.  iii.  p.  503. 


1540.] 


JOURNEY    OF    FRIAR   MARCOS    DE    NIZA. 


59 


Cedars.  There  they  remained  the  greater  part  of  the  time,  until 
the  beginning  of  April,  being  prevented  from  advancing  farther 
north  by  head  winds ;  and  then,  as  several  of  the  crews  of  both 
vessels  were  disabled  by  sickness,  and  their  provisions  were  insuf- 
ficient to  enable  them  to  continue  the  voyage  together  much  longer, 
Ulloa  resolved  to  send  one  of  his  ships  back  to  Mexico.  The 
Santa  Agueda,  bearing  the  sick  and  the  accounts  of  the  discoveries, 
accordingly  sailed  from  the  Isle  of  Cedars  on  the  5th  of  April,  and 
in  the  beginning  of  the  following  month  she  arrived  at  Santiago,  in 
Xalisco,  where  she  was  seized  by  the  officers  of  the  viceroy,  who 
was  anxious  to  learn  the  particulars  of  her  discoveries.  Of  the  fate 
of  Ulloa  there  are  contradictory  accounts.  Herrera  says  that 
nothing  was  ever  heard  of  him  after  his  parting  with  the  Santa 
Agueda  ;  others  of  his  contemporaries,  however,  state  that  he  con- 
tinued his  voyage  along  the  west  coast  of  Cahfornia,  as  far  as  a 
point  called  Cape  Engaho,  near  the  30th  degree  of  latitude,  and 
thence  returned  safely  to  Mexico. 

Whatsoever  may  have  been  the  importance  of  the  geographical 
results  of  this  voyage,  they  were  scarcely  satisfactory  to  Cortes ;  and 
they  attracted  little  attention  among  the  Spaniards  in  Mexico,  who 
were  then  all  engaged  in  plans  and  speculations  concerning  the  rich 
and  delightful  countries,  of  the  discovery  of  which,  by  Friar  Marcos 
de  Niza  and  his  companions,  accounts  had  recently  arrived.  From 
these  accounts,  as  contained  in  the  letter  addressed  to  the  viceroy 
by  Friar  Marcos,*  and  from  other  evidence,  it  is  probable  that  the 
reverend  explorer  did  really  penetrate  to  a  considerable  distance  into 
the  interior  of  the  continent,  and  did  find  there  countries  partially 
cultivated,  and  inh  ir.",!ed  by  people  possessing  some  acquaintance 
with  the  arts  of  civilized  life ;  though,  as  to  the  precise  situation  of 
those  regions,  or  the  routes  pursued  in  reaching  them,  no  definite 
idea  can  be  derived  from  the  narrative.  The  friar  pretended  to 
have  discover  (I.  north-west  of  Mexico,  beyond  the  35th  degree  of 
latitude,  extensive  territories,  richly  cultivated,  and  abounding  in 
gold,  silver,  and  precious  stones,  the  population  of  which  was  much 
greater,  and  farther  advanced  in  civilization,  than  those  of  Mexico 
or  Peru.  In  these  countries  were  many  towns,  and  seven  cities, 
of  which  the  friar  only  saw  one,  called  C'evola  or  Cibola,  containing 
twenty   thousand   large   stone   houses,  some   of  four  stories,  and 


*  The  letter  of  Friar  Marcos,  relating  his  discoveries,  may  be  found  in  Ramusio, 
vol.  iii.  p.  297,  and  in  Hakluyt,  vol.  iii.  p.  438.    See,  also,  H,-rera,  Decade  vi.  p.  204. 


6d 


VOYAGE    OF    ALARCON. 


[1540. 


,!•      11 


m 


f 


adorned  with  jewels ;  yet  he  was  assured,  by  the  people,  that  this 
was  the  smallest  of  the  cities,  and  far  inferior,  in  extent  and  mag- 
nificence, to  one  called  Totonteac,  situated  more  towards  the  north- 
west. The  inhabitants  of  Cibola  had,  at  first,  been  hostile  to  the 
Spaniards,  and  had  killed  the  negro;  but  they  had,  in  the  end, 
manifested  a  disposition  to  embrace  Christianity,  and  to  submit  to 
the  authority  of  the  king  of  Spain,  in  whose  name  Friar  Marcos 
had  taken  possession  of  the  whole  country,  by  secretly  erecting 
crosses  in  many  places. 

Thesc3,  and  other  things  of  a  similar  kind,  gravely  related  by  a 
respectable  priest,  who  professed  to  have  witnessed  what  he  described, 
were  universally  admitted  to  be  true ;  and  the  viceroy  Mendoza, 
having  communicated  them  to  his  sovereign,  began  to  prepare  for 
the  reduction  of  the  new  countries,  and  the  conversion  of  their 
inhabitants  to  Christianity.  Cortes,  however,  insisted  on  continuing 
his  discoveries  in  the  same  direction,  apparently  giving  little  credit 
to  the  statements  of  Friar  Marcos ;  while  his  old  companion  in  ^.rms, 
the  redoubtable  Pedro  de  Alvarado,  claimed  to  undertake  the  con- 
quest in  virtue  of  a  capitulation  recently  concluded  between  himself 
and  the  emperor.  Hernando  de  Soto,  likewise,  who  had  just 
obtained  a  commission  for  the  discovery  of  Florida,  declared  the 
seven  cities  to  be  within  his  jurisdiction ;  and  Nuno  de  Guzman 
protested  that  his  own  right  was  the  best,  and  with  some  reason,  in 
consequence  of  his  labors  in  the  subjugation  and  settlement  of  New 
Galicia,  of  which  he  maintained  that  the  rich  countries  formed 
part.  After  these  disputes  had  lasted  some  months,  a  compromise 
was  made  between  the  viceroy  and  Alvarado,  agreeably  to  which 
the  latter  was  to  command  the  expedition  destined  for  the  reduction 
of  the  rich  territories  in  the  north-west ;  and,  about  the  same  time, 
Cortes  returned  in  disgust  to  Spain,  where  he  passed  the  remaining 
seven  years  of  his  life  in  vain  efforts  to  recover  his  authority  in 
Mexico,  or  to  obtain  indemnification  for  his  losses. 

The  viceroy  Mendr:^a  had,  however,  immediately  on  receiving  the 
news  of  the  discoveries  from  Friar  Marcos,  sent  two  bodies  of  armed 
forces,  the  one  by  land,  the  other  by  sea,  to  reconnoitre  the  rich 
countries,  and  prepare  the  way  for  their  conquest. 

The  marine  armament  consisted  of  two  ships,  commanded  by 
Fernando  de  Aiarcon,  who  sailed  from  the  port  of  Santiago  on  the 
9th  of  May,  1540,  and,  pioceeding  along  the  coast  tov/ards  the 
north-west,  reached  the  extremity  of  the  Gulf  of  California  in 
August  following.     There  he  discovered  a  greai    nver,  which  he 


1540.] 


EXPEDITION  OF  VAZqUEZ  DE  CORONADO. 


PI 


named  Rio  de  Nuestra  Sefiora  de  Buena  Guia,*  (or  River  of  our 
Lady  of  Safe  Conduct,)  probably  the  same  now  called  the  Colorado. 
This  stream  Alarcoa  ascended,  to  the  distance  of  more  than  eighty 
leagues,  with  a  party  of  his  men,  in  boats,  making  inquiries  on  the 
way  about  the  seven  cities;  in  reply  to  which,  he  received  from 
the  Indians  a  number  of  confused  stories  —  of  kingdoms  rich  in 
precious  metals  and  jewels  —  of  rivers  filled  with  crocodiles  and  other 
monsters  —  of  droves  of  bviffaloes  —  of  enchanters  —  and  other  won- 
derful or  remarkable  objects  Of  Totonteac  he  could  learn  nothing ; 
though,  at  the  end  of  hla  voyage  up  the  river,  he  obtained  what  he 
considered  some  definite  information  respecting  Cibola,  and  was 
assured  that  he  might  reach  that  place  by  a  march  of  ten  days  into 
the  interior.  He,  however,  suspected  treachery  on  the  part  of  those 
who  gave  the  assurance  ;  and,  not  conceiving  it  prudent  to  attemp>t 
to  advance  farther,  he  returned  to  his  ships.  In  a  second  voyage  up 
the  river,  he  obtained  no  additional  information ;  and,  believing  it 
needless  to  continue  the  search,  he  went  back  to  Mexico,  where  he 
arrived  before  the  end  of  the  year.f 

The  land  forces,  despatched  at  the  same  time  towards  the  north- 
west, were  composed  of  cavalry  and  infantry,  and  were  accompanied 
by  priests,  for  the  conversion  of  the  natives  to  Christianity.  They 
were  commanded  by  Francisco  Vazquez  de  Coronado,  a  man  of 
resolute  and  serious  character,  and  by  no  means  disposed  to  exag- 
gerate, who  had  been  appointed  governor  of  New  Galicia,  in  place 
of  Nuno  de  Guzman.  His  letter  to  the  viceroy,J  containing 
accounts  of  the  first  period  of  the  expedition,  though  wanting  in 
precision,  is  yet  sufficiently  exact  to  afford  a  general  idea  of  the 
direction  in  which  he  marched,  and  even  of  the  position  of  some  of 
the  principal  places  which  he  visited. 

•  In  honor  of  the  viceroy,  who  bore  on  his  arms  an  image  of  JYuestra  Senora  de 
Buena  Guia. 

t  Letter  of  Alarcon  to  tlie  viceroy  Mendoza,  in  Ramnsio,  vol.  iii.  p.  303,  and  in 
Hakhiyt,  vol.  iii.  p.  505.     See,  also,  Herrera,  Decade  vi.  p.  208. 

Tlie  Californian  Gulf  had  thus  been  completely  explored,  as  appears  not  only 
from  the  accounts  of  the  voyages  of  Ulloa  and  Alarcon,  but  also  from  a  chart  of  the 
coasts  of  California,  and  the  west  coast  of  Mexico,  drawn,  in  1541,  by  Domingo  del 
Castillo,  Alsrcon's  pilot,  of  which  an  tngraved /«c-ji/ni/e  may  be  found  in  the  edition 
of  the  Letters  of  Cortes,  published  at  Mexico,  in  1770,  by  Archbishop  Lorenzana. 
The  shores  of  the  gulf,  and  of  the  west  side  of  California,  to  the  30th  degree  of  lati- 
tude, are  there  delineated  with  a  surprising  approE-^h  to  accuracy.  The  pilot  doubt- 
less derived  his  information  chiefly  from  the  journals  of  Ulloa,  which  were  sent  bach 
in  the  Santa  Agueda,  and  were  seized,  by  order  of  the  viceroy,  immediately  on  tlie 
arrival  of  that  vessel  in  Mexico. 

t  Ramusio,  vol.  iii.  p.  300.    Ilakluyt,  vol.  iii.  p.  447. 


■(,: ! 


m 


CIBOLA. 


[1540. 


•   m 


Agreeably  to  this  letter,  the  Spaniards  left  Culiacan  on  the  2!2d 
of  April,  1540,  and  took  their  way  towards  the  north,  following,  as 
well  as  they  could,  the  course  described  by  the  friar :  but,  ere  they 
had  proceeded  far,  they  had  abundant  evidences  of  the  incorrect- 
ness of  the  accounts  of  that  personage ;  for  the  route  which  he  had 
represented  as  easy  and  practicable,  proved  to  be  almost  impassable. 
They,  however,  made  their  way  over  mountains  and  deserts,  and 
through  rivers,  and,  at  length,  in  July,  they  reached  the  country  of 
the  seven  cities,  for  which  Cibola  appeared  to  be  the  general  name ; 
but,  to  their  disappointment,  it  proved  to  be  only  a  half-cultivated 
region,  thinly  inhabited  by  people  not  absolutely  savage,  though 
destitute  of  the  wealth  and  refinement  attributed  to  hem  by  Friar 
Marcos.  The  seven  great  cities  were  seven  small  towns,  some  of 
them,  indeed,  containing  large  houses  of  stone,  rudely  built,  and  un- 
ornament^d.  Of  fruits  there  were  none,  except  such  as  grew  wild ; 
and  the  immense  quantities  of  precious  metals  and  stones  were 
merely  "  a  few  turquoises,  and  some  gold  and  silver,  supposed  to  be 
good.  In  fine,"  says  Vazquez  de  Coronado,  in  his  letter  to  the 
viceroy,  **  of  the  seven  cities,  and  the  kingdoms  and  provinces  of 
which  the  reverend  father  provincial  made  a  report  to  your  excel- 
lency, he  spoke  the  truth  in  nothing ;  for  we  have  found  all  to  be 
quite  the  contrary,  except  only  as  to  tiie  houses  of  stone."  The 
Spaniards,  nevertheless,  took  possession  of  the  country,  in  due  form, 
for  their  sovereign ;  and,  being  pleased  with  its  soil  and  climate, 
they  entreated  their  commander  to  allow  them  to  remain  and  settle 
there.  To  this  inglorious  proposition  Vazquez  refused  to  consent ; 
and,  having  despatched  his  letter  to  Mendoza,  from  one  of  the  cities 
of  Cibola,  named  by  him  Granada,  he  took  his  departure,  with  his 
forces,  for  the  north-west,  in  search  of  other  new  countries. 

From  the  descriptions  of  the  position,  climate,  productions,  and 
animals,  of  Cibola,  given  by  Vazquez  de  Coronado,  there  is  some 
reason  for  believing  it  to  be  the  region  near  the  great  dividing 
chain  of  mountains,  east  of  the  northernmost  part  of  the  Gulf  of 
California,  about  the  head-waters  of  the  Rivers  Yaqui  and  Gila, 
which  fall  into  that  arm  of  the  Pacific.  This  part  of  America,  now 
•ailed  Sonora,  (a  corruption  of  Senora,)  though  long  since  settled  by 
the  Spaniards,  is  little  known  to  the  inhabitants  of  other  countries. 
It  is  described,  by  those  who  have  recently  visited  it,  as  a  most 
delightful,  productive,  and  salubrious  region,  containing  innumerable 
mines  of  silver  and  gold,  among  which  are  some  of  the  richest  in 
the  world.     There  are,  moreover,  in  that  territory,  many  collections 


1540—1543.] 


^UITIRA. 


68 


of  ruins  of  large  stone  buildings,  which  were  found  in  their  present 
state  by  the  first  Spanish  settlers,  and  are  called  casus  grandes  de 
los  Azteques,  (great  houses  of  the  Aztecks,)  from  the  supposi- 
tion or  tradition  that  they  were  built  by  that  people  before  their 
invasion  of  Mexico.*  Vazquez  de  Coronado,  indeed,  remarks  that 
the  inhabitants  of  Cibola,  thourjh  not  wanting  in  intelligence,  did 
not  appear  to  be  capable  of  erecting  the  houses  which  he  saw  there. 

Of  the  movements  of  the  Spaniards,  after  they  quitted  Cibola, 
in  August,  1540,  the  accounts  are  so  vague  and  contradictory,  that 
it  is  impossible  to  trace  their  route.  It  seems,  however,  that  the 
greater  part  of  the  forces  soon  returned  to  Mexico ;  while  the  others, 
under  their  commander,  wandered,  for  nearly  two  years  longer, 
through  the  interior  of  the  continent,  in  search  of  a  country  called 
Q^uivira,  said,  by  the  Indians,  to  be  situated  far  in  the  north,  and  to 
be  governed  by  "  a  king  named  Tatarrax,  with  a  long  beard,  hoary- 
headed,  and  rich,  wlo  worshipped  a  cross  of  gold,  and  the  image 
of  the  Queen  of  Heaven."  f  This  country  they  found  near  the  40th 
degree  of  latitude :  but  the  people  had  no  other  wealth  than  skins ; 
and  their  king,  though  hoary-headed,  possessed  no  jewels,  "  save  one 
of  copper,  hanging  about  his  neck."  Quivira  is  described  as  a  level 
territory,  covered  with  herds  of  buffaloes,  which  form  the  whole 
support  of  the  inhabitants ;  and,  if  its  latitude  has  been  correctly 
reported,  it  is  most  probably  the  region  about  the  head-waters  of  the 
Arkansas  and  Platte  Rivers ;  though  Gomara  places  it  near  the  sea, 
and  says  that  the  Spaniards  saw  ships  on  the  coast,  laden  with 
East  India  goods.  Vazquez  had,  probably,  before  leaving  Quivira, 
learned  the  true  value  of  Indian  accounts  of  rich  countries ;  and, 
not  deeming  it  advisable  to  pursue  the  search  for  them  any  longer, 
he  returned  to  Mexico  in  1543. 

During  the  absence  of  Vazquez  de  Coronado,  the  great  arma- 
ment, destined  for  the  exploration  and  conquest  of  the  north-western 
territories,  under  Pedro  de  Alvarado,  was  prepared ;  but,  just  as 
the  expedition  was  about  to  be  commenced,  a  rebellion  broke  out 
among  the  Indians  of  Xalisco,  and  all  the  forces  at  the  viceroy's 
disposal  were  required  to  quell  it.  In  the  campaign  which  ensued, 
in  the  summer  of  1541 ,  Alvarado  was  killed  by  a  kick  from  a  horse ; 
and  Mendoza's  expectations  of  advantage  from  the  north-west 
regions  were,  in  the  mean  time,  so  much  lowered,  that  he  resolved 
to  reduce  the  scale  of  his  expeditions  for  discovery  in  that  quarter. 


'J  m 


•  Hardy  b  Travels  in  Mexico,  from  1825  to  1828. 


t  (jromara,  chap.  213 


'i' 


64 


TOTAGE    or   CABRILLO. 


[1542,  1543. 


The  disturbancea  being,  at  length,  ended,  in  the  spring  of  1542,  two 
vessels  were  placed  under  ihe  command  of  Juan  Rodriguez  Cabrillo, 
a  Portuguese  of  high  reputation  as  a  navigator,  who  was  directed 
to  examine  the  western  side  of  California,  as  far  norli.ward  as  pos- 
sible, seeking  particularly  for  rich  countries,  and  for  passages  leading 
towards  the  Atlantic ;  while  Ruy  Lopez  de  Villalobos,  a  relation  of 
the  viceroy,  was  sent,  with  the  remamder  of  the  disposable  vessels 
and  forces,  across  the  Pacific,  to  endeavor  to  form  establishments  in 
India. 

The  two  vessels  under  Cabrillo  sailed  together  from  Navidad,  a 
small  port  in  Xalisco,  in  June,  1542 ;  and,  having  in  a  few  days 
doubled  Cape  San  Lucas,  the  survey  of  the  west  coast  of  California 
W£8  btigun  from  that  point.  It  would  be  needless  to  ei.deavor  to 
trace  the  progress  of  Cabrillo  along  this  coast,  or  to  enumerate  the 
many  capes  and  bays  mentioned  in  the  accoqnt  of  his  voyage, 
nearly  all  of  which  places,  so  far  as  they  can  be  identified,  are  now 
distinguished  by  names  entirely  different  from  those  bestowed  on 
them  by  him.  By  the  middle  of  August,  he  had  advanced  beyond 
the  limits  of  the  supposed  discoveries  of  UUoa ;  and,  in  November, 
after  having  examined  the  coast  as  far  north  as  the  38th  degree  of 
latitude,  he  was  driven  back,  and  forced  to  take  refuge  in  a  harbor 
named  by  him  Port  Possession,  situated  in  the  Island  of  San 
Bernardo,  one  of  the  Santa  Barbara  group,  near  the  main  land, 
under  the  34th  parallel.  There  Cabrillo,  who  had  been  for  some 
time  sick,  sank  under  the  fatigues  of  the  voyage,  on  the  3d  of 
January,  1543,  leaving  the  command  to  the  pilot,  Bartolome  Ferrelo. 

The  new  commander,  being  no  less  zealous  and  determined  than 
his  predecessor,  resolved,  if  possible,  to  accomplish  the  main  objects 
of  the  expedition  before  returning  to  Mexico.  He  accordingly, 
soon  after,  sailed  from  Port  Possession  towprds  the  north,  and,  on 
the  26th  of  February,  reached  a  promontory  situated  under  the  41st 
parallel,  to  which  he  gave  the  name  of  Cabo  de  For  tunas,  (Cape 
of  Perils,  or  Stormy  Cape,)  from  the  dangers  encountered  in  its 
vicinity.  On  the  1st  of  March,  the  ships  were  in  the  latitude  of 
44  degrees,  as  determined  by  a  solar  observation ;  but,  on  the  fol- 
lowing day,  tliey  were  again  driven  to  the  south ;  and,  the  men 
being,  at  this  time,  almost  worn  out,  by  long  exposure  to  cold  and 
fatigue,  without  sufficient  food  or  clothing,  Ferrelo  determined  to  go 
back  to  Mexico.  The  ships,  therefore,  quitted  the  Isle  c'"  Cedars, 
discovered  by  Ulloa,  in  the  beginning  of  April,  and,  on  the  14th  of 
that  month,  they  arrived  at  Navidad. 


1543.] 


EXPEDITION    or    SOTO. 


65 


From  the  accounts  of  this  expedition  which  have  been  preserved, 
it  is  not  easy  to  determine  precisely  how  far  north  the  American 
coast  was  discovered.  The  mo>it  norttiern  point  of  land  mentioned 
in  those  accounts  is  the  Cape  of  Perils,  which,  though  there  placed 
under  the  41st  parallel,  was  probably  the  same  soon  after  called 
Cape  Mendocino,  in  the  latitude  of  40  degrees  '20  minutes.  Other 
authors,  however,  whose  opinions  are  entitled  to  respect,  pronounce 
the  43d  parallel  to  be  the  northern  limit  of  the  discoveries  made  by 
the  Spaniards  in  1543.* 

Whilst  these  expeditions  to  the  north-western  parts  of  America 
were  in  progress,  Hernando  de  Soto,  and  his  band  of  Spanish 
adventurers,  were  performing  their  celebrated  march,  in  quest  of 
mines  and  plunder,  through  xii  regions  extending  north  of  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico,  which  were  then  known  by  the  general  name  of  Florida. 
Without  attempting  here  to  trace  the  line  of  their  wanderings, 
suffice  it  to  say,  that  they  traversed,  in  various  directions,  the  vast 
territories  now  composing  the  Southern  and  South- Wesiern  States 
of  the  American  Federal  Union,  and  descended  the  Mississippi  in 
boats,  from  the  vicinity  of  the  mouth  of  the  Arkansas  to  the  Mex- 
ican Gulf,  on  which  they  continued  their  voyage,  along  the  coast, 
to  Panuco.  From  the  accounts  of  the  few  who  survived  the  toils 
and  perils  of  that  memorable  enterprise,  taken  together  with  those 
collected  by  Cabeza-Vaca  and  Vazquez  de  Coronado,  concerning 
the  territories  which  they  had  respectively  visited,  it  was  considered 
certain  that  neither  wealthy  nations,  nor  navigable  passages  rf  com- 
munication between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific  Oceans,  rjere  to  be 
found  north  of  Mexico,  unless  beyond  the  40th  parallel  of  latitude. 

The  Spaniards,  having  arrived  at  these  conclusions,  for  some  time 
desisted  from  attempting  to  explore  the  north  western  section  of 
the  continent;  and  circumstances,  meanwhile,  occurred,  which 
impressed  their  government  with  the  belief  that  the  discovery  of  any 
passage  facilitating  the  entrance  of  European  vessels  into  the  Pacific, 
would  be  deleterious  to  the  power  and  interests  of  Spain  in  the  New 
World. 


'.  >g 


*  Introduction  to  the  Journal  of  Galiano  and  Voldes,  p.  35.    See,  also,  Bumey's 
History  of  Voyages  in  tlie  Pacific,  vol.  i.  p.  230. 

9 


66 


\ 


CHAPTER   II. 


1543  TO  1606. 


The  Spaniards  conquer  the  Philippine  Islanda,  and  cstablifh  a  direct  Trade  across  the 
Pacific,  between  Asia  and  America  —  Measures  of  tin  Spani-li  Government  to 
prevent  other  European  Nations  from  settlintr  or  trading  i  America  —  Tiir»e 
Measures  resisted  by  the  English,  tue  French,  and  the  Dutch  — Free  Traders  and 
Freebooters  infest  the  West  indies  —  First  Voyages  of  the  English  in  the  Pacitic  — 
Voyages  of  Drake  and  Cavendish  —  Endoii\  orsof  the  Englisli  to  discover  \orth- 
West  Passage  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific  —  False  Reportn  i  the  Discovery 
of  such  Passages  —  Supposed  Voyages  of  Urdaneta,  Maldonad'.),  and  Font'  — 
Voyage  of  Juan  de  Fuca  —  Expedition  of  Sebastian  Vizcaino  —  Supposed  Dis- 
covery of  a  great  River  in  North-We- :,  America. 


Whilst  the  Spaniards  wore  thus  extending  their  dominion  in 
the  New  World,  the  Portugues'*  were  daily  acquiring  advantages 
in  India,  with  which  they  carried  on  a  profitable  trade,  by  means  of 
their  ships  sailing  around  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope.  The  Spaniards, 
viewing  this  increase  of  the  power  of  their  rivals  with  jealousy  and 
hatred,  made  many  endeavors,  likewise,  to  form  establishments  in 
Asia  ;  but  all  their  expeditions  for  that  purpose  before  the  middle 
of  the  sixteenth  century,  terminated  disastrously.  The  armaments 
sent  from  Spain  to  India  under  Loyasa,  in  1525,  and  from  Mexico, 
under  Saavedra,  in  the  ensuing  year,  were  entirely  ineffective.  In 
1542,  Ruy  Lopez  de  Villalobos  crossed  the  Pacific  with  a  large 
squadron  from  Mexico,  and  took  possession  of  the  Philippine  Islands 
for  his  sovereign ;  but  his  forces  were  soon  after  dispersed,  and 
none  of  his  vessels  returned  either  to  Europe  or  to  America. 

In  1564,  the  Spaniards  made  another  attempt  to  gain  a  footing 
in  the  East  Indies,  which  was  successful.  The  Philippine  Islands 
were  in  that  year  subjugated  by  Miguel  de  Legazpi,  who  had  been 
despatched  from  Mexico  with  a  small  squadron  for  the  purpose ; 
and  a  discovery  was  also  made  in  the  course  of  this  expedition, 
without  which  the  conquest  would  have  been  of  no  \alue.  Before 
that  period,  no  European  had  ever  crossed  the  Pacific  from  Asia  to 
America;  all  who  had  endeavored  to  make  such  a  voyage  having 
confined  themselves  to  the  part  of  the  ocean  between  the  tropics 


15fi4.]    IMPROVEMENTS    IN   THE    NAVIGATION    OF    THE    PACIFIC.         67 


where  the  winds  blow  constantly  from  eastern  points.  Throe  of 
Lejiazpi's  vessels,  however,  under  the  direction  of  Andres  de 
Urdnnetn,  a  friar,  who  had  in  early  life  accompanied  Magellan  in 
his  expedition,  and  had  subsequently  acquired  great  repotation  as 
a  navigator,  by  taking  a  northward  course  from  the  Philippine 
Islands,  entered  a  region  of  variable  winds,  near  the  40th  parallel 
of  latitude,  and  were  thus  enabled  to  reach  the  coast  of  California, 
along  which  the  prevailing  north-westers  carried  them  speedily  to 
Mexico.  ' 

The  Spaniards  thus  gained,  what  they  had  so  long  covrt?d,  a 
position  in  th^-  East  Indies ;  and  the  practicability  of  commi'iii' ;  ,ui ,;, 
by  way     '  Pacific,  between  Asia  and  America,  '     >  i'l^rv^l 

beyon  At  the  same  time,  also,  Juan  FernanJes  a  ,;     i- 

ered  the  vigating  between  places  on  the  west  coast  of 

South  A,  standing  out  obliquely  to  a  distance  from  the 

continent;  und  otlier  improvements  of  a  similar  kind  having  been 
moreover  introduced,  the  Spanish  commerce  on  the  Pacific  soon 
became  important.  Large  ships,  called  galleons,  sailed  annually 
from  Acapulco  to  Manilla,  in  the  Philippine  Islands,  and  to  Macao, 
in  China,  laden  with  precious  metals  and  European  merchandise,  in 
return  for  which  they  brought  back  silks,  spices,  and  porcelain,  for 
consumption  in  Amurica,  or  for  transportation  over  the  Atlantic  to 
Europe ;  while  an  extensive  trade  in  articles  equally  valuable  was 
carried  on  between  Panama  and  the  various  ports  of  Peru  and 
Cliili.  These  voyages  on  the  Pacific  were  usually  long,  but  com- 
paratively safe,  at  least  so  far  as  regards  exemption  from  injury  by 
winds  and  waves,  though  the  crews  of  the  vessels  often  suffered 
dreadfully  from  sn  rvy  occasioned  by  filth  and  want  of  good  water 
and  provisions ;  *  and,  as  that  ocean  remained  for  some  years  undis- 
turbed by  the  presence  of  enemies  of  Spain,  little  care  or  cost  was 
bestow  td  upon  the  defence,  either  of  the  vessels  or  of  the  towns  on 
the  coasts. 

The  galleons,  proceeding  from  Mexico  to  India,  were  wafted,  by 
the  invariable  easterly  or  trade  winds,  directly  across  the  ocean,  in 
about  three  months ;  in  the  return  voyage,  they  often  occupied 
more  than  double  that  time,  and  they  always  made  the  west  coast 
of  California,  the  principal  points  on  which  thus  became  tolerably 
well  known  before  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century.     Accounts  of 

*  For  accounts  of  the  miseries  of  a  voyage  from  Manilla  to  Acapulco,  in  1697,  see 
Gemelli  Carreri's  narrative,  in  the  fourth  volume  of  Churchill's  collection  of  voyages, 
which,  if  not  true,  is  very  like  truth. 


H    ,11] 
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IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


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2.2 

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23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 

(716)  872-4503 


68 


▼OTAOE   or   OALI. 


[1584. 


Ik: 


some  of  these  voyages  have  been  preserved,  but  they  are  of  little 
value  at  present,  from  their  want  of  precision.  One  of  them  is  a 
letter  from  Francisco  Gali,  addressed  to  the  viceroy  of  Mexico, 
describing  his  passage  from  Macao  to  Acapulco,  in  1584,  in  the 
course  of  which  he  sailed  along  the  west  coast  of  America,  from  the 
latitude  of  thirty-seven  and  a  half  degrees  southward  to  Mexico.* 
It  has,  however,  been  maintained,  on  the  evidence  of  papers  found 
:n  the  archives  of  the  Indies,!  that  Gali  arrived  on  that  coast  in  the 
latitude  of  fifty-seven  and  a  half  degrees,  and  is  therefore  to  be 
considered  as  the  discoverer  of  the  whole  shore  between  that  par- 
allel and  the  forty-third:  but  this  assertion  is  supported  by  no 
evidence  sufficient  to  overthrow/  the  express  statement  of  the 
navigator  in  his  letter,  the  genuineness  of  which  is  not  denied ;  and 
Crali,  moreover,  there  declares  that  the  land  first  seen  by  him  was 
"very  high  and  fair,  and  wholly  wiihxnU  snow"  which  could  not 
have  been  the  case  with  regard  to  the  north-west  coast  of  America, 
under  the  parallel  of  fifty-seven  and  a  half  degrees,  in  the  middle 
of  October.  In  1595,  Sebastian  Cermenon,  in  the  ship  San 
Augustin,  on  his  way  from  Manilla  to  Acapulco,  examined  the 
same  coasts,  by  order  qf  the  viceroy  of  Mexico,  in  search  of  some 
harbor  in  which  the  galleons  might  take  refuge,  and  make  repairs, 
or  obtain  water;  but  nothing  has  been  preserved  respecting  his 
voyage,  except  that  his  ship  was  lost  near  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco, 
south  of  Cape  Mendocino. 

The  Spanish  government  was,  in  the  mean  time,  engaged  in 
devising,  and  applying  to  its  dominions  in  the  New  World,  those 
measures  of  restriction  and  exclusion,  which  were  pursued  so 
rigidly,  and  with  so  little  variation,  during  the  whole  period  of  its 
supremacy  in  the  American  continent.  The  great  object  of  this 
system  was  simply  to  secure  to  the  monarch  and  people  of  Spain 
the  entire  enjoyment  of  all  the  advantages  which  were  supposed  to 
be  derivable  from  those  dominions,  consistently  with  the  perpetual 
maintenance  of  absolute  authority  over  them ;  and,  for  this  object,  it 


*  In  Hakluyt,  vol.  iii.  p.  526,  the  letter  from  Gali  to  the  viceroy  is  given  at  length, 
as  "translated  out  of  the  original  Spanish  into  Dutch,  by  John  Huyghen  Van 
Linschoten,  and  out  of  Dutch  into  English."  In  Linschoten,  as  in  Hakluyt,  thirty- 
seven  and  a  half  degrees  is  given  as  the  northernmost  part  of  the  coast  seen  by  Gali. 

\  See  the  note  in  the  Introduction  to  the  Journal  of  Galiano  and  Valdes,  at  page 
46,  in  which  two  letters  from  the  viceroy  of  Mexico  to  the  king  of  Spain,  relative 
to  the  voyage  of  Gali,  are  mentioned ;  but  the  account  there  given  differs  in  nothing, 
except  as  to  the  latitude,  from  that  in  the  letter  published  by  Linscluiten  and  Hak- 
luyt. Humboldt  adopts  the  opinion  of  the  author  of  the  Introduction,  without, 
however,  adding  any  information  or  reasoning  on  the  subject. 


1570.] 


SPANISH   aOVBBNMKNT   OF    AMERICA. 


69 


was  deemed  expedient  not  only  to  exclude  the  subjects  of  other  Euro- 
pean states  from  the  territories  claimed  by  Spain,  —  that  is,  from  the 
whole  of  the  New  World  except  Brazil, — but  also  to  prevent  the 
rapid  development  of  the  resources  of  the  Spanish  provinces  them- 
selves.* In  these  views  the  Spaniards  have  not  been  singular ;  but 
no  other  power,  in  modern  times,  has  employed  measures  so  extreme 
in  fulfilling  them.  Thus  no  Spaniard  could  emigrate  to  America, 
no  new  settlement  could  be  formed  there,  and  no  new  country  or 
sea  could  be  explored,  without  the  express  permission  of  the  sov- 
ereign ;  and,  when  expeditions  for  discovery  were  made,  the  results 
were  often  concealed,  or  tardily  and  imperfectly  promulgated.  No 
article  could  be  cultivated  or  manufactured  for  commerce  in  Amer- 
ica, which  could  be  imported  from  Spain ;  and  no  intercourse  could 
be  carried  on  between  the  different  great  divisions  of  those  posses- 
sions, or  between  either  of  them  and  the  mother  country,  except  in 
vessels  belonging  to  or  specially  licensed  by  the  government,  or 
otherwise  under  its  immediate  supervision.  With  the  rest  of  the 
world,  the  Spanish  Americans  could  have  no  correspondence ;  and 
all  foreigners  were  prohibited,  under  pain  of  death,  from  touching 
the  territories  claimed  by  Spain,  and  even  from  navigating  the  seas 
in  their  vicinity.  "Whoever,"  says  Hakluyt,  at  the  end  of  the 
sixteenth  century,  ''is  conversant  with  the  Portugal  and  Spanish 
writers,  shall  find  that  they  account  all  other  nations  for  pirates, 


*  The  Spanish  dominions  in  America,  together  with  the  Canary  and  the  Philippine 
Islands,  formed  one  empire,  called  the  Indies,  of  which  the  king  of  Spain  was,  ex 
officio,  the  sovereign.  The  territories  were  divided  into  great  sections,  or  kingdoms, 
each  entirely  independent  of  the  others,  except  in  certain  prescribed  contingencies , 
the  general  direction  of  the  whole  being  committed  to  the  Supreme  Council  of  the 
Indies,  a  special  ministry,  residing  in  the  palace  of  the  king,  in  whose  name  all  ita 
orders  were  issued.  The  larger  kingdoms  of  the  Indies  were  under  the  immediate 
government  of  viceroys,  representing  the  authority  and  person  of  the  sovereign ;  the 
others  were  governed  by  captains-gentrol,  or  by  presidents,  whose  powers  were 
more  limited.  All  these  high  officers  were,  however,  kept  in  che.'j>.  by  the  couiti 
called  Auditndas,  resembling  the  Supreme  Council  in  their  organization  and 
attributes,  one  or  two  of  which  were  established  in  each  kingdom.  The  commeroe 
of  those  countries  was  under  the  superintendence  of  a  board,  called  the  House  qf 
Contracts  of  the  Indies,  sitting  at  Seville,  to  and  from  which  port  all  expeditions,  firom 
and  to  America,  were,  for  a  long  time,  obliged  to  pass. 

The  laws  and  regulations  of  the  Supreme  Council  were,  from  time  to  time,  revised; 
and  those  which  were  to  remun  in  force  were  published  in  a  collection  entitied  the 
Reeopilacion  de  Leyes  de  Indias,  (Compilation  of  Laws  of  the  Indies,)  containing 
the  rules  for  the  conduct  of  all  the  officers  of  the  government.  The  provisions  of 
this  celebrated  code  are,  in  general,  remarkable  for  their  justice  and  humanity ;  the 
enforcement  of  them,  being,  however,  left  to  those  who  had  no  direct  interest  in  the 
prosperity  and  advancement  of  the  country,  was  most  shameAilly  neglected. 


70 


rREE  TRADERS  AND  rREEBOOTERS. 


[1570. 


loven,  and  thieves,  which  visit  any  heathen  coast  that  they  have 
•ailed  by  or  looked  on." 

Against  these  exclusive  regulations  the  English  and  the  French 
at  first  murmured  anJ  protested,  and  then  began  to  act.  The 
English  government,  having  thrown  off  its  allegiance  to  the  head  of 
the  Roimin  Catholic  church,  denied  the  validity  of  the  Spanish 
claims  founded  on  the  papal  concessions,  and  required  from  Spain 
the  recognition  of  the  rights  of  Englishmen  to  navigate  any  part  of 
the  ocean,  to  settle  in  any  country  not  occupied  by  another  Chris- 
tian nation,  and  to  trade  with  the  Spanish  American  provinces. 
These  demands  having  been  resisted,  Queen  EUzabeth*  openly,  as 
well  as  covertly,  encouraged  her  subjects,  even  in  time  of  peace,  to 
violate  regulations  which  she  pronounced  unjustifiable  and  inhuman ; 
and  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  and  the  West  Indian  seas  were,  in  conse- 
quence, haunted  by  bands  of  daring  English,  who,  under  the 
equivocal  denominations  of  frtt  traders  and  freebooters,  set  at 
defiance  the  prohibitions  of  th")  Spaniards,  as  to  commerce  and 
territorial  occupation,  and  plundered  their  ships,  and  the  towns  on 
their  coasts.  About  the  same  time,  the  French  Protestants  began 
their  attempts  to  plant'  colonies  in  Florida  and  Carolina,  which  were 
not  defeated  without  considerable  expenditure  of  Spanish  blood  and 
treasu^;  and  the  revolt  in  the  Netherlands,  which  ended  in  the 
liberation' of  the  Dutch  provinces,  soon  after  produced  a  formidable 
addition  to  the  forces  of  these  irregular  enemies  of  Spain.  The 
effor]^ ,  of  the  English,  and  of  their  government,  to  establish  com- 
merce with  the  Spanish  dominions  in  America,  have,  in  fact,  been 
the  principal  causes  or  motives  of  nearly  all  the  wars  between  those 
nations  since  the  Middle  of  the  sixteenth  century.  In  these  efforts 
the  Jlngllsli  have  constantly  perse vere>^  id  the  Spanish  govern- 
ment has  resolutely  opposed  them,  du;   ^^  peace,  during  war,  and 


11 


*  Queen  Elizabeth's  reply  to  tV  Spinish  ambuBador,  who  complained  of  the 
plunder  of  one  of  his  lOTereign'*  vejsels  by  the  English,  in  the  West  Indies,  during 
peace  between  the  two  nations,  is  chaitu:teristic  of  her  disposition,  as  well  as  reason- 
able. She  said  "  that  the  Spaniards  had  drawn  these  inconveniences  upon  themselves, 
by  their  severe  and  unjust  dealings  in  their  American  commerce ;  for  she  did  not 
understand  nhy  either  her  subjects,  or  those  of  any  other  European  prince,  Should 
be  debarred  from  traffic  in  the  Indies ;  that,  as  she  did  not  acknowledge  the'Spaniards 
to  have  any  title,  by  donation  of  the  bishop  of  Rome,  so  she  knew  no  right  they  had 
to  any  places  other  than  those  they  were  in  actual  possession  of;  for  that  their 
having  touched  only  here  and  there  upon  a  coast,  and  given  names  to  a  tew  riven 
or  elites,  were  such  insignificant  things  as  could  in  no  ways  entitle  them  to  a  pro- 
priety father  than  in  the  parts  where  they  actually  settled,  and  continued  to  inhabit." 
—Camden's  Annals  of  Queen  Elizabeth's  Reign,  for  1580. 


/ 


1570.]         ALARMS    AND   PRCHIBITIONJ^    OF   THE    SPANIARDS. 


ift 


\ 


I  the  French 

0  act.    The 
» the  head  of 
the  Spanish 
i  from  Spain 
e  any  part  of 
mother  Chris- 
an  provinces, 
h*  openly,  as 
3  of  peace,  to 
and  inhuman ; 
rere,  in  cbnse- 
o,  under  the 
ooters,  set  at 
iommerce  and 
the  towns  on 
testants  began 
la,  which  were 
aish  blood  and 

ended  in  the 

1  a  formidable 
Spain.    The 

istablish  com- 
!,  in  fact,  been 
Ibetween  those 
these  efforts 
tanish  govern- 
ring  war,  and 


even  during  alliance  between  the  two  powers,  until  the  last  moment 
of  the  existence  of  thd  Spanish  authority  in  the  American  continent. 

Could  Spain  have  so  long  retained  the  possession  of  her  colonies 
in  America,  if  she  had  adopted  any  other  system  with  regard  to 
them  ? 

The  Pacific  was,  for  some  years,  preserved  from  the  ravages  of 
these  daring  adventurers,  by  the  dread  of  the  difficulties  and 
dangers  attending  the  passage  of  vessels  into  that  ocean,  from  the 
Atlantic,  through  the  Strait  of  Magellan ;  and  the  Spanish  govern- 
ment began  to  regard  as  bulwarks  of  defence  those  natural 
obstacles  to  maritime  intercourse  between  Europe  and  the 
western  side  of  America,  to  remove  or  counteract  which  so  many 
efforts  had  been  previously  made.  Thenceforward,  the  expeditions 
of  the  Spaniards,  in  search  of  new  channels  connecting  the  two 
oceans,  were  undertaken  only  with  the  object  of  securing  the 
passage,  if  it  should  be  found,  against  the  vessels  of  other 
nations;  and  the  heaviest  penalties  were  denounced  against  all 
persons  who  should  attempt,  or  even  propose,  to  form  artificial 
communications  by  canals  across  the  continent.*  These  circum- 
stances, on  the  other  hand,  served  to  stimulate  the  enemies 
of  Spain  in  their  endeavors  to  discover  easier  routes  to  the  Pacific ; 
to  effect  which,  the  Dutch  and  the  English  navigators  perseveringly 
labored,  during  the  latter  years  of  the  sixteenth  and  the  beginning 
of  the  seventeenth  centuries. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  reports  of  the  extent  and  value  of  the 
Spanish  commerce  on  the  Pacific,  and  of  the  wealth  accumulated 
in  the  towns  on  the  American  coasts  of  that  ocean,  overcame  all 
the  fears  of  the  English,  who  at  length  spread  their  sails  on  its 
waters,  and  carried  terror  and  desolation  along  its  coasts. 


*  Alcedo,  in  his  Oeo^phical  and  Historical  Dictionary  of  the  West  Indies,  under 
the  head  Isthmus,  says,  "  In  the  time  of  Philip  II.,  it  was  proposed  to  cut  a  canal 
through  the  Isthmus  of  Psnamd,  for  the  passage  of  ships  from  one  ocean  to  the 
other;  and  two  Flemish  engineers  were  sent  to  examine  the  place,  with  that  object. 
They,  however,  found  the  obstacles  insuperable ;  and  the  Council  of  the  Indies  at 
the  same  time  represented  to  the  king  the  injuries  which  such  a  canal  would  occasion 
to  the  monarchy ;  in  consequence  of  which,  his  majesty  decreed  that  no  one  should 
in  future  attempt,  or  even  propose,  suck  an  undertaking,  under  pain  of  death." 

The  same  author,  speaking  of  the  Rivf  r  Atrato,  in  New  Granada,  emp^ng  into 
the  Atlantic, — between  which  and  the  San  Juan,  falling  into  the  Pacific,  it  was  also 
proposed  to  make  a  canal,  —  says,  "The  Atrato  is  navigable  for  many  leagues;  but 
all  persons  are  forbidden,  under  pain  of  death,  from  navigating  it,  in  order  to  prevent 
the  injuries  which  New  Grenada  would  sustain,  from  tihe  fkcility  thus  afforded  for 
entering  its  territory."  , 


§■  i 


78 


▼OTAOE    OF   DRAKE. 


[1677. 


The  first  irruption  of  the  English  into  the  Pacific  was  made  in 
1575,  by  a  party  of  freebooters,  under  John  Oxenham,  who  crossed 
the  isthmus  a  little  west  of  Panama,  and,  having  then  built  a  vessel 
on  the  southern  side,  took  many  valuable  prizes  before  any  attempt 
could  be  made,  by  the  Spaniards,  to  arrest  their  progress.  They, 
however,  in  a  few  months,  fell  successively  into  the  hands  of  their 
enemies,  and  were  nearly  all  executed  with  ignominy  at  Panama. 
Their  fall  was,  three  years  afterwards,  signally  avenged  by  another 
body  of  their  countrymen,  under  the  command  of  the  greatest 
naval  captain  of  the  age.  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  say  that  this 
captain  could  be  no  other  than  Francis  Drake,  of  whose  celebrated 
voyage  around  the  world  —  the  first  ever  performed  by  one  crew  in 
one  vessel — an  account  will  be  here  given,  as  he,  in  the  dourse 
of  it,  visited  the  north-west  side  of  America,  and  is  supposed, 
though  erroneously,  as  will  be  proved,  to  have  made  important 
discoveries  in  that  quarter. 

Drake  sailed  from  Plymouth  on  the  13th  of  December,  1577, 
with  five  small  vessels,  which  had  been  procured  and  armed  by 
himself  and  other  private  individuals  in  England,  ostensibly  for 
a  voyage  to  Egypt,  but  really  for  a  predatory  cruise  against  the 
dominions  and  subjects  of  Spain.  The  governments  of  England 
and  Spain  were  then,  indeed,  at  peace  with  each  other :  but  mutual 
hatred,  arising  from  causes  already  explained,  prevailed  between  the 
two  nations ;  and  the  principles  of  general  law  or  morals  were  not, 
at  that  period,  so  refined  as  to  prevent  Queen  Elizabeth  from  favor- 
ing DraJce's  enterprise,  with  the  real  objects  of  which  she  was  well 
acquainted. 

For  some  months  after  leaving  England,  Drake  roved  about  the 
Atlantic,  without  making  any  prize  of  value:  he  then  refitted  his 
vessels  at  Port  San  Julian,  on  the  eastern  coast  of  Patagonia ;  and 
he  succeeded  in  conducting  three  of  them  safely  through  the  dread- 
ed Strait*  of  Magellan,  into  the  Pacific,  which  he  entered  in  Sep- 
tember, 1578.  Scarcely,  however,  was  this  accomplished,  ere  the 
little  squadron  was  dispersed  by  a  storm;  and  the  chief  of  the 
expedition  was  left  with  only  a  schooner  of  a  hundred  tons'  burden, 
and  about  sixty  men,  to  prosecute  his  enterprise  against  the  power 
and  wealth  of  the  Spaniards  on  the  western  side  of  America. 

Notwithstanding  these  disheartening  occurrences,  Drake  did  not 
hesitate  to  proceed  to  the  parts  of  the  coast  occupied  by  the  Span- 
iards, whom  he  found  unprepared  to  resist  him,  either  on  land  or  on 
sea.    He  accordingly  plundered  their  towns  and  ships  with  little 


1579.] 


VOTAGE    OT   DRAKE. 


73 


difficulty ;  and  so  deep  nnd  lasting  was  the  impression  produced  by 
his  achievements,  that,  for  more  than  a  century  afterwards,  his  name 
was  never  mentioned  in  those  countries  without  exciting  feelings  of 
horror  and  detestation. 

At  length,  in  the  spring  of  1579,  Drake,  having  com^ileted  his 
visitation  of  the  Spanish  American  coasts,  by  the  plunder  of  the 
town  of  Guatuico,  on  the  south  side  of  Mexico,  and  filled  his  vessel 
with  precious  spoils,  became  anxious  to  return  to  England ;  but, 
having  reason  to  expect  that  the  Spaniards  would  intercept  him, 
if  he  should  attempt  to  repass  Magellan's  Strait,  he  resolved  to 
seek  a  northern  route  to  the  Atlantic.  Accordingly,  on  quitting 
Guatuico,  he  steered  west  and  north-webt,  and,  having  sailed  in 
those  directions  about  1400  leagues,  he  had,  in  the  beginning  of 
June,  advanced  beyond  the  42d  degree  of  north  latitude,  where 
his  men,  being  thus  **  speedily  come  out  of  the  extreme  heat,  found 
the  air  so  cold,  that,  being  pinched  with  the  same^  they  complained 
of  the  extremity  *th  3renf."  He  had,  in  fact,  reached  the  part  of 
the  Pacific,  near  the  American  coasts,  where  the  winds  blow  .con- 
stantly and  violently,  during  the  summer,  from  the  north  and  north- 
west, accompanied,  generally,  by  thick  f<^s,  which  obscure  the 
heavens  for  many  days,  and  even  weeks,  in  succession ;  and,  find- 
ing these  difficulties  increase,  as  he  went  farther,  "  he  thought  it 
best,  for  that  time,  to  seek  the  land."  He  accordingly  soon  made 
the  Ametican  coast,  and  endeavored  to  approach  it,  so  as  to  anchor ; 
but,  finding  no  proper  harbor  there,  he  sailed  along  the  shore  south- 
ward, until  the  17th  of  the  month,  when  "  it  pleased  God  to  send 
him  into  a  fair  and  good  bay,  within  38  degrees  towards  the  line."  * 

In  this  bay  the  English  remained  five  weeks,  employed  in  re- 
fitting their  vessel,  and  obtaining  such  supplies  for  their  voyage 
as  the  country  o  Jered.  The  natives, "  having  their  houses  close  by 
the  water's  side,"  at  first  exhibited  signs  of  hostility:  but  they 
were  soon  conciliated  by  the  kind  and  forbearing  conduct  of  the 
strangers;  and  their  respect  for  Drake  increased,  so  that,  when 
they  saw  him  about  to  depart,  they  earnestly  prayed  him  to  con- 
tinue among  them  as  their  king.  The  naval  hero,  though  not 
disposed  to  undertake,  in  person,  the  duties  of  sovereignty  over  a 


*  TheM  qaotatioas  are  from  the  Famous  Voyage  of  Sir  Francia  Drake,  by  Francis 
iFietty,  one  of  the  orew  of  Drake's  vessel,  written  at  the  request  of  Hakluyt,  and 
I  published  by  him  in  1589.  It  is  a  plain  and  succinct  account  of  what  the  writer  saw, 
lor  believed  to  have  occorred,  during  the  voyage,  and  bean  all  the  marks  of  truth 
|«Bd  aatheatici^. 

10 


T4 


DRAKE    MADE    XIKO   OF   NEW   AI.BION. 


[1679. 


I  iilji 


tribe  of  naked  or  skin-clad  savages,  nevertheless  "thought  not 
meet  to  reject  the  crown,  because  he  knew  not  what  honor  or  profit 
it  might  bring  to  his  own  country ;  whereupon,  in  the  name,  and 
to  the  use,  of  her  majesty.  Queen  Elizabeth,  he  took  the  crown^ 
sceptre,  and  dignity,  of  the  country  into  his  own  hands,  wishing 
that  the  riches  and  treasure  thereof  might  be  so  conveniently 
transported,  for  the  enriching  her  kingdom  at  home.''  The  coro- 
nation accordingly  took  place,  with  most  ludicrous  solemnities, 
and  Drake  bestowed  on  his  dominions  the  name  of  New  Albion. 

The  vessel  having  been  refitted,  Drake  erected  on  the  shore  a 
pillar,  bearing  an  inscription,  commemorating  the  fact  of  this 
cession  of  sovereignty ;  and,  on  the  22d  of  July,  he  took  leave  of 
his  worthy  subjects,  to  their  great  regret.  Having,  however,  by 
this  time,  abandoned  all  idea  of  seeking  a  northern  passage  to  the 
Atlantic,  he  sailed  directly  across  the  Pacific,  and  thence,  through 
the  Indian  Seas,  and  around  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  to  England, 
where  he  arrived  on  the  26th  of  September,  1580. 

With  regard  to  the  harbor  on  the  North  Pacific  side  of  America, 
in  which  Drake  repaired  his  vessel,  nothing  can  be  learned  from 
the  accounts  of  his  expedition  which  have  been  published,  except 
that  it  was  situated  about  the  38th  degree  of  latitude,  and  that  a 
cluster  of  small  islets  lay  in  the  ocean,  at  a  short  distance  from 
its  mouth;  which  description  will  apply  equally  to  the  Bay  of 
San  Franciacoy  and  to  the  Bay  of  Bodega,  a  few  leagues  fieuther 
north. 

As  to  the  extent  of  the  portion  of  the  njrth-west  coast  of 
America  seen  by  Drake,  the  accounts  differ.  Before  examining 
them,  it  should  be  first  observed,  that,  from  tlie  great  nav^tor  him- 
self, nothing  whatsoever  has  descended  to  us,  either  as  written  by 
him,  or  as  reported  by  others  on  his  authority,  respecting  his  voyage 
in  the  North  Pacific ;  on  the  circumstances  of  which,  all  the  informa- 
tion is  derived  from  two  narratives,  —  the  one  proceeding  entirely 
from  a  person  who  had  accompanied  Drake  in  his  expedition,  and 
published  in  1589,  during  the  life  of  the  hero,  —  the  other  compiled 
from  various  accc  nts,  and  not  given  to  the  world  until  the  middle 
of  the  following  century. 

In  the  first-ment'oned  of  those  narratives,  called  the  Famous 
Voyage  from  r/hich  the  preceding  quotations  are  made,  the  vessel 
is  represented  as  being  in  the  forty-third  degree  of  latitude  on  the 
f^fth  of  June,  when  it  was  determined  to  seek  the  land ;  but  on 
what  day,  or  in  what  latitude,  the  coast  was  discovered,  is  not  stated. 


1579.]        PAKT  or  KOBTH-WCST  COAST  SEEN  BT  DRAKE. 


76 


In  the  other  narrative,  called  the  World  Encompassed,*  it  is  declared 
that  the  vessel  was  in  latitude  of  43  degrees  on  the  third  of  June, 
and  that,  on  the  fifth  of  the  same  month,  she  anchored  near  the  land 
of  America,  in  a  "  bad  bay,"  in  latitude  of  forty^ight  degrees,  frdm 
which  being  soon  driven  by  the  violence  of  the  winds,  she  ran 
along  the  coast,  southward,  to  the  harbor  where  she  was  refitted. 
Thus  the  two  accounts  diflfer  as  to  the  vessels'  position  on  the 
fifth  of  June,  on  which  day  it  is  rendered  probable,  from  both,  ttiat 
the  land  was  first  seen.  Hakluyt,  who  took  great  interest  m  all  tliat 
related  to  the  west  coast  of  North  America,  as  well  as  to  Drake, 
gives  the  43d  parallel,  in  many  places  in  his  works,  as  the  northern 
limit  of  his  countrymen's  discoveries;  and  the  same  opinion  is 
maintained  by  Camden,  Purchas,  De  Laet,  Ogilby,  Heylin,  Locke, 
Dr.  Johnson,  and  every  other  author  who  wrote  on  the  subject 
before  the  middle  of  the  last  century  —  except  the  two  following: 
The  celebrated  navigator  John  Davis,  in  his  World's  Hydrographi- 
cal  Discovery,  published  in  1595,  asserts  that,  "after  Sir  Francis 
Drake  was  entered  into  the  South  Sea,  he  coasted  all  the  western 
shores  of  America,  until  he  came  to  the  septentrional  latitude  of 
48  degrees ; "  this  assertion,  however,  carries  with  it  its  own  refu- 
tation, as  it  is  nowhere  else  pretended  that  Drake  saw  any  part  of 
the  west  coast  of  America  between  the  17th  degree  of  latitude  and 
the  38th.  Sir  William  Monson,  another  great  naval  authority  of 
that  age,  declares,  in  his  Tracts,  first  printed  in  1712,  that,  ''from 
the  16th  of  April  to  the  15th  of  June,  Drake  sailed  without  seeing 
land,. and  arrived  in  48  degrees,  thinking  to  find  a  passage  into  our 
seas ; "  but,  unfortunately  for  Sir  William's  consistency,  he  main- 
tains, in  many  other  parts  of  his  Tracts,  that  "  Cape  Mendocino 
[near  the  40th  parallel]  is  the  farthest  land  discovered,"  r* -;  ''the 
farthermost  known  land."  In  the  Life  of  Sir  Francis  Dra;..s  ^rab- 
lished  in  1750,  in  the  Biographia  Britannica,  the  opinion  that  he 


*  "The  World  EnoompaaKd,  by  Sir  Franois  Drake,  collected  out  of  the  Notes  of 
Mr.  Francis  Fletcher,  Preacher,  in  this  Employtient,  and  compared  with  dimera 
others'  Notes  that  went  in  the  same  Voyage."  According  to  Barrow,  it  was  prepared 
by  a  nephew  of  the  navigator,  shortly  after  his  death ;  it  was,  however,  not  published 
until  165S.  It  may  be  found  at  length  in  Osborne's  Collection  of  Voyages,  vol.  ii. 
p.  434.  It  is  a  long  and  diffuse  account,  filled  with  dull  and  generally  absurd  specula- 
tions, and  containing,  moreover,  a  number  of  statements  which  ate  positive  and 
evidently  wilful  falsehoods;  yet  it  contains  scarcely  a  single  fact  not  related  in  the 
Famous  Voyage,  from  which  many  sentences  and  paragraphs  are  taken  vtrbatkn, 
while  others  convey  the  same  meaning  in  different  terms.  The  journal,  or  supposed 
journal,  of  Fletcher  remains  in  manuscript  in  the  British  Musesm ;  and  fh>m  it  were 
dnivad  tke  laiw  •tAtements  above  mentioned,  accopding  to  Banow,  who  consulted  it, 


1- 

■ 

i''  ■': 

i;  ■!! 

! 

■  . 

'. 

76 


■ill 


t   ,:i 


i  ;|'  f  : 

, :.  :i. 

!■!     ;l'       ''iV 


PART   or   MOKTH-WKST   COAST   SCEIf   BY   DRACr. 


[1679. 


discovered  the  American  coast  to  the  48th  degree  was  again  brought 
forwardi  and  it  has  been  since  admitted  generally  by  British  writer*. 
Burney,  who  has  examined  the  question  at  length  in  his  History  of 
Voyages  in  the  South  Sea,  published  in  1803,  pronounces  that 
**  the  part  of  the  coust  discovered  by  Drake  is  to  be  reckoned  as 
beginning  immediately  to  the  north  of  Cape  Mendocino,  and  ex- 
tending to  48  degrees  of  north  latitude,"  —  on  tho  authority  of  (he 
World  Encompassed,  especially  of  the  assertion  in  that  narrative 
that  <*  the  English  searched  the  coast  diligently  even  unto  the  48th 
degree,  yet  they  found  not  the  land  to  trend  so  much  as  one  point, 
in  any  place,  towards  the  east."  Burney,  however,  with  his  usual 
want  of  candor,  omits  to  quote  the  remainder  of  the  sentence,  — 
"  but  rather  running  on  continually  north-west,  as  if  it  went  directly 
to  meet  with  Asia,"  —  well  knowing  that  it  destroyed  the  value  of 
the  evidence  in  the  first  part ;  for  the  west  coast  of  America  no- 
where, between  the  40th  and  the  48th  degrees  of  latitude,  runs 
north-west,  its  course  being  nearly  due  nwth.  Lastly,  Barrow,  in 
his  Life  and  Times  of  Sir  Francis  Drake,  which  appeared  in  1843, 
presents  his  hero  as  the  discoverer  of  the  west  coast  of  America 
from  the  38th  to  the  48th  parallels,  without  giving  the  slightest  inti- 
mation that  any  doubt  on  the  subject  had  ever  existed  or  could  exist. 
To  conclude :  the  World  Encompassed  is  the  only  direct  authority 
for  the  belief  that  Drake,  in  1579,  discovered  the  west  coast  of 
America  as  far  north  as  the  48th  degree  of  latitude.  In  examining 
the  particulars  of  that  account,  we  find  that,  between  the  1st  and 
the  5th  of  June,  in  two  days,  the  English  vessel  siuled  through  six 
degrees  of  latitude,  northward,  with  the  wind  blowing  constantly 
and  violently  from  that  very  quarter — a  rate  of  sailing  which  could 
scarcely  be  attained  at  the  present  time  under  similai*  circumstances. 
We  moreover  learn,  that,  during  the  whole  period  in  which  the  lati- 
tudes are  given  thus  positively,  the  heavens  were  obscured  by  thick 
fogs,  and  the  vessel  constantly  agitated  by  storms,  in  either  of  which 
cases  alone,  no  observations  worthy  of  reliance  could  have  been 
made  with  the  instruments  then  in  use.  When  we  also  take  into 
consideration  the  direct  falsehoods,  in  the  some  narrative,  respect- 
ing the  cold  in  that  part  of  the  Pacific,  which  is  represented  as  so 
intense,  during  the  months  of  June  and  July,  that  meat  was  frozen 
so  soon  as  taken  from  the  fire,  and  ropes  arid  sails  were  stiffened  by 
ic^  we  may  safely  conclude  that  further  evidence  is  requisite  to 
establish  the  certainty  that  Drake,  in  1579,  saw  any  part  of  the  west 
coast  of  North  America  which  had  not  been  seen  by  the  Spaniards 
in  1543. 


1578.1 


CATEN  JI8H  8   EXPEDITIOir. 


77 


Tho  luccess  of  Drake's  enterprise  encouraged  other  English 
adventurers  to  attempt  similar  expeditions  through  the  Straits  of 
Magellan ;  and  it  stimulated  the  navigators  of  his  nation  in  their 
eflforts  to  discover  northern  passages  into  the  Pacific  Ocean.  Of 
their  predatory  excursions,  none  were  attended  with  success,  except 
that  of  the  famous  Thomas  Cavendish,  or  Candish,  who  rendered 
his  name  almost  as  terrible  to  the  Spaniards  as  that  of  Drake,  by 
his  ravages  on  the  west  coasts  of  America,  during  his  voyage  of 
circumnavigation  of  the  globe,  in  1587.  In  this  voyage,  Cavendish 
lay,  for  scmie  time,  near  Cape  San  Lucas,  the  southern  extremity 
of  California,  and  there  captured  the  Manilla  galleon  Santa  Anna, 
on  her  way,  with  a  rich  cargo  of  East  India  goods,  to  Acapulco, 
which  he  set  on  fire,  after  plundering  her,  and  landing  her  crew  on 
the  coast.  The  unfortunate  Spaniards,  thus  abandoned  in  a  desert 
country,  must  soon  have  perished,  had  they  not  succeeded  in 
repairing  their  vessel,  which  was  driven  ashore  near  them,  after  the 
extinction  of  the  flames  by  a  storm,  and  sailing  in  her  to  a  port  on 
the  opposite  coast  of  Mexico.  Among  these  persons  were  Juan 
de  Fuca  and  Sebastian  Vizcaino,  of  each  of  whom  much  will  be 
said  in  this  chapter. 

About  this  time,  the  search  for  northern  passages  of  communi- 
cation between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific  Oceans  was  begun  by 
the  English ;  *  and  it  was  prosecuted  at  intervals,  by  the  navigators 
of  that  nation  and  of  Holland,  during  nearly  sixty  years,  after 
which  it  was  abandoned,  or  rather  suspended.  In  the  course  of 
the  voyages  undertaken  for  this  object,  eastward  as  well  as  west- 
ward from  the  Atlantic,  many  important  geographical  discoveries 
and  improvements  in  the  art  and  science  of  navigation  were 
effected ;  and  the  persons  thus  engaged  acquired  an  honorable  and 
lasting  reputation,  by  their  skill,  perseverance  against  difficulties, 
and  contempt  of  dangers.  The  Spanish  government  was,  at  the 
same  period,  according  to  the  direct  testimony  derived  from  its 
official  acts,  and  the  accounts  of  its  historians,  kept  in  a  state  of 
constant  alarm,  by  these  efforts  of  its  most  determined  foes  to 
penetrate  into  an  ocean  of  which  it  claimed  the  exclusive  posses- 
sion ;  and  the  uneasiness  thus  occasioned  was,  fronr  time  to  time, 
increased,  by  rumors  of  the  accomplishment  of  the  dreaded 
discovery. 

These  rumors  were,  for  the  most  part,  in  confirmation  of  the 

*  The  first  voyage  made  from  England,  with  the  exprcaa  object  of  seeking  a  north 
west  passage  to  the  Pacific,  was  that  of  Martin  Frobisher,  in  1576. 


78 


nXPORTBD  DIIOOTBRT  OF  URDAReTA. 


[1560. 


i 


;l  ■' 

r   ' 

•' 

ti'  ■''      ;'      ■ 

iiili.^iiiiii;: '. 

exiftenco  of  the  pumge  called  the  t^rait  of  Anion,  joining  the 
Atlantic,  under  the  60th  parallel  of  north  latitude,  through  which 
Cortereal  was  laid  to  have  sailed,  in  1600,  into  a  great  western  sea ; 
and  those  who  pretended  to  have  made  northern  voyages  from  either 
ocean  to  the  other,  generally  asserted  that  they  had  passed  through 
the  Strait  of  Anian.  The  accounts  of  all  such  voyages  yet  made 
public  are  now  known  to  be  as  fal"e,  with  regard  to  the  principal 
circumstances  related,  as  those  of  the  discovery  of  the  philosopher's 
stone  and  the  elixir  vitas,  current  at  the  same  pc^od  in  Europe ; 
and  the  former,  like  the  latter,  had  their  origin,  ge  mlly,  in  the 
knavery  or  the  vanity  of  their  authors,  though  some  of  them  were 
evidently  mere  fictions,  invented  for  the  purpose  of  exercising 
ingenuity,  or  of  testing  the  credulity  of  the  public.  But,  as  the 
conviction  of  the  possibility  of  transmuting  all  other  mutals  into 
gold,  and  of  prolonging  life  indefinitely,' led  to  the  knowledge  of 
many  of  the  most  important  facts  in  chemistry,  so  did  the  belief  in 
the  existence  of  a  north-west  passage  from  the  Atlantic  to  the 
Pacific  serve  to  accelerate  the  progrem  of  geographical  discovery 
and  scientific  navigation. 

Among  those  who  were  earliest  believed  to  have  accomplished 
northern  voyages  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific,  or  vice  versa,  was 
the  celebrated  Friar  Andres  de  Urdoiieta,  the  discoverer  of  the  mode 
of  navigating  the  Pacific  from  east  to  west.>  "  One  Salvatierra,  a 
gentleman  of  Victoria,  in  Spain,  that  came  by  chance  out  of  the 
West  Indies  into  Ireland,  in  1568,"*  there  assured  Sir  Humphrey 
Gilbert  and  Sir  Henry  Sydney,  that  Urdaneta  had,  more  than 
eight  years  previous,  told  him,  in  Mexico,  "  that  he  came  from  Mar 
del  Sur  [the  Pacific]  into  Germany  through  the  northern  passage, 
and  showed  Salvatierra  a  sea-card,  [chart,]  made  by  his  own  expe- 
rience and  travel  in  that  voyage,  wherein  was  plainly  set  down  and 
described  the  north-west  passage."  This  was,  however,  most  proba- 
bly, a  falsehood  or  amplification  on  the  part  of  Salvatierra,  to  induce 
Sir  Humphrey  to  employ  him  on  a  voyage  which  he  then  projected, 
as  nothing  appears  in  the  history  or  character  of  Urdaneta  to  justify 
the  belief  that  he  would  have  made  such  a  declaration.  In  the 
archives  of  the  Council  of  the  Indies,t  which  have  been  examined 


•  «« A  Discourse  to  prove  a  Passage  by  the  North- West  to  Cathaia  [China]  and  the 
East  Indies,  by  Sir  Humphrey  Gilbert,"  first  published  in  1576,  and  republished  by 
Hakluyt,  in  his  "  Voyages,  Navigations,  Traiiics,  and  Discoveries,  of  the  English 
Nation."     See  the  reprint  of  Hakluyt,  vol.  iii.  p.  33. 

t  Introduction  to  the  Journal  of  Galiaao  aad  Valdes,  p.  36. 


1689.] 


rilETEirDED   TOTAOB    Of   MALDONADO. 


79 


with  reference  to  thii  matter,  are  many  original  papers  by  UrdaAeta, 
in  which  he  montioni  a  report,  that  some  Frenchmen  had  miled 
from  the  Atlantic,  beyond  the  70th  degree  of  north  latitude,  through 
a  pamago  opening  into  the  Pacific,  near  the  50th  degree,  and  thence 
to  China;  and  he  recommends  that  measures  should  be  taken, 
without  delay,  to  ascertain  the  truth  of  the  report,  and,  if  the 
passage  should  be  found,  to  establish  fortifications  at  its  mouth,  in 
order  to  prevent  other  nations  from  using  it  to  the  injury  of 
Spain. 

In  1574,  an  old  pilot,  named  Juan  Ladrillero,  living  at  Colima, 
in  Mexico,  pretended  that  he  had,  in  his  youth,  sailed  through  a 
passage,  from  the  Atlantic,  near  Newfoundland,  into  the  Pacific ; 
and  other  assertions,  to  the  some  effect,  were  made  by  various  other 
individuals,  either  from  a  desire  to  attract  notice,  or  with  the  view 
of  obtaining  emolument  or  employment. 

The  most  celebrated  fiction  of  this  class  is  the  one  of  which 
Lorenzo  Ferrer  de  Maldonado  is  the  hero.  This  person,  a  Portu- 
guese by  birth,  who  had  written  some  extravagant  works  on 
geography  and  navigation,  and  pretended  to  have  discovered  a 
magnetic  needle  without  variation,  presented  to  the  Council  of  the 
Indies,  in  1609,  a  memoir  or  narrative  of  a  voyogs  from  Lisbon  to 
the  Pacific,  through  seas  and  channels  north  of  America,  which  he 
declared  that  he  himself  had  accomplished  in  1588,  accompanied 
by  a  petition  that  he  should  be  rewarded  for  his  services,  and  be 
intrusted  with  the  command  of  forces,  to  occupy  the  passage,  and 
defend  its  entrance  against  other  nations.  This  proposition  was 
instantly  rejected  by  the  Council :  but  some  of  the  papers  relating 
to  it  were  retained ;  and  two  manuscripts  are  now  preserved,  the 
one  in  the  library  of  the  duke  of  Infantado,  at  Madrid,  the  other 
in  the  Ambrosian  library,  at  Milan,  each  purporting  to  be  the  origi- 
nal memoir  presented  by  Maldonado. 

These  papers  are  each  entitled  "  A  Relation  of  the  Discovery  of  the 
Strait  of  Anian,  made  by  me.  Captain  Lorenzo  Ferrer  de  Maldonado, 
in  the  Year  1588 ;  in  which  is  described  the  Course  of  the  Navigation, 
the  Situation  of  the  Place,  and  the  Manner  of  fortifying  it ; "  and 
their  contents  are  nearly  the  same,  except  that  the  Milan  paper 
is,  in  some  places,  more  concise  than  the  other,  from  which  it  seems 
to  have  been,  in  a  manner,  abridged.  Upon  the  whole,  there  is 
reason  to  believe  the  Madrid  document  to  be  a  true  copy  of  the 
memoir  presented  by  Maldonado ;  though  it  has  been  pronounced, 
by  one  who  has  examined  the  subject  with  much  care,  to  be  a 


. 

80 


PRETENDED    VOTAGE    OF   MALDONADO. 


[1588. 


fabrication  of  a  later  date.*  Whether  the  fabrication,  as  it  un- 
doubtedly is,  proceeded  from  Maldonado,  or  from  some  other 
person,  is  of  no  importance  at  the  present  day.  A  few  extracts 
will  serve  to  show  its  general  character,  and  to  bring  to  view  the 
opinions  entertained  in  Europe,  during  the  seventeenth  century, 
with  regard  to  the  northern  parts  of  America. 

After  stating  the  advantages  which  Spain  might  derive  from  a 
northern  passage  between  the  two  oceans,  and  the  injury  which  she 
might  sustain,  were  it  left  open  to  other  nations,  Maldonado  proceeds 
thus  to  describe  the  voyage :  — 

"Departing  from  Spain,  —  suppose  from  Lisbon, — the  course 
is  north-west,  for  the  distance  of  450  leagues,  when  the  ship  will 
have  reached  the  latitude  of  60  degrees,  where  the  Island  of 
Friesland  f  will  be  seen,  rommonly  called  File,  or  Fulc :  it  is  an 
island  somewhat  smaller  than  Ireland.  Thence  the  course  is  west- 
ward, on  the  parallel  of  60  degrees,  for  180  leagues,  which  will 
bring  the  navigator  to  the  land  of  Labrador,  where  the  strait  of  that 
name,  or  Davis's  Strait,  begins,  the  entrance  of  which  is  very  wide, 
being  somewhat  more  than  30  leagues :  the  land  on  the  coast  of 
Labrador,  which  is  to  the  west,  is  very  low ;  but  the  opposite  side 
of  the  mouth  of  the  strait  consists  of  very  high  mountains.  Here 
two  openings  appear,  between  which  are  these  high  mountains. 
One  of  the  passages  runs  east-north-east,  and  the  other  north- 
west ;  the  one  running  east-north-east,  which  is  on  the  right  hand, 
and  looks  towards  the  north,  must  be  left,  as  it  leads  to  Greenland, 
and  thence  to  the  Sea  of  Friesland.  Taking  the  other  passage,  and 
steering  north-west  80  leagues,  the  ship  will  arrive  in  the  latitude 

*  See  a  review,  supposed  to  "be  written  by  Borrow,  of  the  manuscript  found  at 
Milan  by  Carlo  Amoretti,  in  the  London  Quarterly  Review  for  October,  1816.  A 
translation  of  the  most  material  parts  of  that  paper  may  be  found  in  Burney's 
History  of  Voyages  in  the  Pacific,  vol.  5,  p.  167.  A  translation  of  the  whole  of  the 
Madrid  document,  with  copies  of  the  maps  and  plans  annexed  tj  it,  is  given  by 
Barrow,  at  the  conclusion  of  his  Chronological  History  of  Voyages  in  the  Arctic 
Regions.  See,  also,  the  Introduction  to  the  Journal  of  Galiano  and  Valdce,  p.  49. 
The  reviewer  above  mentioned  "  suspects  this  pretended  voyage  of  Maldonado  to  be 
the  clumsy  and  audacious  forgery  of  some  ignorant  German,  from  the  circumstance 
of  15  leagues  to  the  degree  being  used  in  some  of  the  computations;"  but  the 
courses  are  not  laid  down  with  so  much  exactness  in  the  account,  as  to  warrant  the 
assertion  that  15  leagues  are  employed,  instead  of  17^,  which  would  have  been  the  true 
subdivision  of  the  degree  of  latitude  in  Spanish  leagues. 

t  An  island  of  this  name  was  long  supposed  to  exist  near  the  position  here  assigned 
to  it,  on  the  faith  of  an  apocryphal  account  of  some  voyages  which  were  said  to 
have  been  made  in  the  North  Atlantic  about  the  year  1400,  by  the  brothers  Antonio 
and  Nicolo  Zeno,  of  Venice.  Friesland  has  been,  by  some,  considered  as  identical 
with  thsFeroe  Islands. 


\    «■ 


1688.] 


FRETENBED  VOTAGE  OF  MALDONADO. 


81 


of  64  degrees.  There,  the  strait  takes  another  turn  to  the  north, 
continuing  one  hundred  and  twenty  leagues,  as  far  as  the  latitude 
of  70  degrees,  when  it  again  turns  to  the  north-west,  and  runs  in 
that  direction  ninety  leagues,  to  the  75th  degree  of  latitude,  near 
which  the  whole  of  the  Strait  of  Labrador  will  have  been  passed  ; 
that  is  to  say,  the  strait  begins  at  60  degrees,  and  ends  at  75  de- 
grees, being  two  hundred  and  ninety  leagues  in  length,  and  having 
three  turns,  the  first  and  last  of  which  run  north-west  and  south- 
east, and  the  middle  one  north  and  south,  being  sometimes  narrower 
than  twenty  leagues,  and  sometimes  wider  than  forty,  and  contain- 
ing many  bays  and  sheltering  places,  which  might  be  of  service  in 
cases  of  necessity.         ####**•* 

"  Having  cleared  the  Strait  of  Labrador,  we  began  to  descend 
from  that  latitude,  steering  west-south-west,  and  south-west,  three 
hundred  and  fifty  leagues,  to  the  7l8t  degree  of  latitude,  when  we 
perceived  a  hi^  coast,  without  being  able  to  discover  whether  it 
was  part  of  the  continent,  or  an  island ;  but  wc  remarked  that,  if  it 
were  the  continent,  it  must  be  opposite  the  coast  of  New  Spain 
From  this  land  we  directed  our  course  west-south-west  four  hundred 
and  forty  leagues,  until  we  came  to  the  60th  degree,  in  which  par- 
allel we  discovered  the  Stnut  of  Anian.        #  •         •         • 

"  The  strait  which  we  discovered  in  60  degrees,  at  the  distance  of 
one  thousand  seven  hundred  and  ten  leagues  from  Spain,  appears, 
according  to  ancient  tradition,  to  be  that  named  by  geographers,  in 
their  maps,  the  Strait  of  Anian ;  and,  if  it  be  so,  it  must  be  a  strait 
having  Asia  on  the  one  side,  and  America  on  the  other,  which  seems 
to  be  the  case,  according  to  the  following  narration :  — 

'<  As  soon  as  we  had  cleared  the  strait,  we  coasted  along  the  shores 
of  America  for. more  than  one  hundred  leagues  south-westward,  to 
the  55th  degree  of  latitude,  on  which  coast  there  were  no  inhab- 
itants, nor  any  opening,  indicating  the  vicinity  of  another  strait, 
through  which  the  South  Sea,  flowing  into  the  North,  might  insulate 
that  part;  and  we  concluded  that  all  that  coast  belonged  to 
America,  and  that,  continuing  along  it,  we  might  soon  reach  Qui- 
vira  and  Cape  Mendocino.  We  then  left  this  coast,  and,  sailing 
towards  the  west  four  days,  with  the  wind  a-beam,  so  that  we  made 
thirty  leagues  a  day,  we  discovered  a  very  high  land,  and  continued 
along  the  coast,  from  which  we  kept  at  a  safe  distance,  always  in  the 
open  sea,  sailing,  at  one  time,  to  the  north-east,  at  otherar  towards 
mnrth-north-east,  and  again  to  the  north,  whence  it  seemed  to  us 
that  the  coast  ran  north-east  and  south-west.  We  were  unable 
II 


m 


PRKTCNDED   VOYAGE    OF   MALDONADO. 


[1588. 


■J 

)  ; 

■':|:     ■'     1 

il 

-d 

to  mark  any  particular  points,  on  account  of  our  distance  from 
the  land ;  and  we  can,  therefore,  only  affirm  that  it  is  inhabited, 
nearly  to  the  entrance  of  the  strait,  as  we  saw  smoke  rising  up  in 
many  places.  This  country,  according  to  the  charts,  must  belong  to 
Tartary,  or  Catbaia,  [China ;]  and  at  the  distance  of  a  few  leagues 
from  the  coast  must  be  the  famed  city  of  Cambalu,  the  metropolis 
of  Tartary.  Finally,  having  followed  the  direction  of  this  coast, 
we  found  ourselves  at  the  entrance  of  the  same  strait  of  Anian, 
which,  fifteen  days  before,  we  had  passed  through  to  the  open  sea ; 
this  we  knew  to  be  the  South  Sea,  where  are  situated  Japan, 
China,  the  Moluccas,  India,  New  Guinea,  and  the  land  discovered 
by  Captain  Quiros,  with  all  the  coast  of  New  Spain  and  Peru.  *  * 

"  The  Strait  of  Anian  is  fifteen  leagues  in  length,  and  can 
easily  be  passed  with  a  tide  lasting  six  hours ;  for  those  tides 
are  very  rapid.  There  are,  in  this  length,  six  turns,  and  two 
entrances,  which  lie  north  and  south ;  that  is,  bear  from  each  other 
north  and  south.  The  entrance  on  the  north  side  (through  which 
we  passed)  is  less  than  half  a  quarter  of  a  league  in  width,  and 
on  each  side  are  ridges  of  high  rocks ;  but  the  rock  on  the  side  of 
Asia  is  higher  and  steeper  than  the  other,  and  hangs  over,  so  that 
nothing  falling  from  the  top  can  reach  its  base.  The  entrance  into 
the  South  Sea,  near  the  harbor,  is  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  league 
in  width,  and  thence  the  passage  runs  in  an  oblique  direction, 
increasing  the  distance  between  the  two  coasts.  In  the  middle  of 
Ijie  strait,  at  the  termination  of  the  third  turn,  is  a  great  rock,  and 
an  islet,  formed  by  a  rugged  rock,  three  estadias  [about  one 
thousand  one  hundred  feet]  in  height,  more  or  less;  its  form  is 
round,  and  its  diameter  may  be  two  hundred  paces ;  iU  distance 
from  the  land  of  Asia  is  very  little ;  but  the  sea,  on  that  side,  is 
full  of  shoals  and  reefs,  and  can  only  be  navigated  by  boats.  The 
distance  between  this  islet  and  the  continent  of  America  is  less 
than  a  quarter  of  a  league  in  width ;  and,  although  its  channel  is  so 
deep  that  two  or  even  three  ships  might  sail  abreast  through  it,  two 
bastions  might  be  built  on  the  banks  with  little  trouble,  which 
would  contract  the  channel  to  within  the  reach  of  a  musket  shot. 

''  In  the  harbor  in  which  our  ship  anchored,  at  the  entrance  of 
the  strait,  on  the  south  side,  we  lay  from  the  beginning  of  April  to 
the  middle  of  June,  when  a  large  vessel,  of  eight  hundred  tons' 
burden,  came  there  from  the  South  Sea,  in  order  to  pass  the  strait. 
Upon  this,  we  put  ourselves  on  our  guard ;  but,  having  come  to  an 
understanding  with  her,  I  found  them  willing  to  give  us  some 


''■I" 


vi! 


\  • 


1588.] 


PBETENDED  TOTAOE  OV  KALDONAOO. 


83 


of  their  merchandire,  the  greater  part  of  which  consisted  of  articles 
similar  to  thoR^  r  ifactured  in  China,  such  as  brocades,  silks,  porce- 
lain, feathers,  p  -.ious  stones,  pearls,  and  gold.  These  people 
seemed  to  be  Hanseatics,  who  inhabit  the  Bay  of  St.  Nicholas,  6r 
the  port  of  St.  Michael,  [Archangel,  on  the  White  Sea.]  In  order 
to  understand  one  another,  we  were  forced  to  speak  Latin,  those  of 
our  party  who  understood  that  language  talking  with  those  on  board 
the  ship  who  were  also  acquainted  with  it.  They  did  not  seem  to 
be  Catholics,  but  Lutherans.  They  said  they  came  from  a  large  city, 
more  than  one  hundred  lea^^  aes  from  the  strait ;  and,  though  I  cannot 
exactly  remember  its  name,  I  think  they  called  it  Rohr,  or  some 
such  name,  which  they  said  had  a  good  harbor,  and  a  navigable 
river,  and  was  subject  to  the  great  khan,  as  it  belonged  to  Tartary, 
and  that,  in  that  port,  they  left  another  ship  belonging  to  their 
country.  We  could  learn  no  more  from  them,  as  they  acted  with 
great  caution,  and  little  confidence,  being  afraid  of  our  company ; 
wherefore  we  parted  from  them,  near  the  strait,  in  the  North  Sea, 
and  set  sail  towards  Spain." 

The  preceding  extracts,  from  a  translation  of  the  manuscript  at 
Madrid,  will  suffice  to  show  the  course  which  the  Portuguese  pre- 
tended to  have  taken,  in  1588.  The  remainder  of  the  paper  is 
devoted  to  descriptions  of  the  supposed  strait,  and  plans  for  its 
occupation  and  defence  by  Spain;  nothing  being  said  as  to  the 
circumstances  which  induced  the  navigators  to  return  to  Europe  by 
the  same  route,  instead  of  pursuing  their  course  to  some  Spanis|i 
port  on  the  Pacific.  It  is  needless  to  use  any  arguments  to  prove 
that  no  such  voyage  could  have  been  ever  made ;  as  we  know  that 
the  only  connection  by  water  between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific, 
north  of  America,  is  through  the  Arctic  Sea  and  Bering's  Strait, 
which  latter  passage  is  more  than  sixteen  leagues  in  width,  and  is  sit- 
uated near  the  65th  degree  of  latitude.  It  has,  however,  been  sug- 
gested, and  it  is  not  improbable,  that,  before  the  period  when 
Maldonado  presented  his  memoir  to  the  Council  of  the  Indies,  some 
voyage,  of  which  we  have  no  account,  may  have  been  made  in  the 
North  Pacific,*  as  far  as  this  entrance  of  the  gulf  called  Cook's 
Met,  and  that  this  entrance,  situated  under  the  60th  parallel  of 
latitude,  may  have  been  supposed,  by  the  navigator,  to  be  the 
western  termination  of  the  long-sought  Strait  of  Anian. 

The  story  certainly  attracted  considerable  attention  at  the  time 

*  Article  on  the  north-west  passage,  in  the  Quarterly,  for  October,  1S16,  abova 
mentioned. 


i '  :i 


84 


STOaT  or  THE  TOTAOE  OF  rONTI. 


[164a 


.  1   ■!'. 


when  it  was  put  forth,  and  allusions  are  made  to  it  by  several 
Spanish  authors  of  the  seventeenth  century ;  it  had,  however,  been 
entirely  forgotten  when  the  French  geographer  M.  Buache,  having 
obtained  a  copy  of  the  Madrid  manuscript,  endeavored  to  establish 
the  truth  of  the  most  material  points,  in  a  paper  read  by  him  before 
the  Academy  of  Sciences,  at  Paris,  on  the  13th  of  November, 
1790.  At  his  request,  the  archives  o(  the  Indies  were  examined, 
in  search  of  documents  relating  to  the  supposed  voyage ;  and  the 
commanders  of  Spanish  ships,  then  employed  in  the  surveying 
the  north-west  coasts  of  America,  were  instructed  to  endeavor 
to  find  the  entrance  of  the  Strait  of  Anian,  near  the  60th 
degree  of  latitude.  These  endeavors  proved  vain,  and  the 
name  of  Maldonado  had  again  sunk  into  oblivion,  when  it  was 
again,  in  1812,  brought  before  the  world  by  Signer  Amoretti,  of 
Milan,  who  found,  in  the  Ambrosian  library,  in  that  city,  the  man« 
uscript  ah-eady  mentioned,  and  published  a  French  translation  of 
it,  with  arguments  in  support  of  the  truth  of  its  contents.  So  far 
as  is  known,  the  falsehoods  of  Maldonado  have  injwed  no  one, 
and  they  were  ultimately  productive  of  great  good;  for  it  was 
while  engaged,  by  order  of  the  Spanish  government,  in  examining 
the  archives  of  the  Indies  respecting  this  pretended  voyage,  that 
Navarrete  found  those  precious  documents,  relating  to  the  expedi- 
tions of  Columbus  and  other  navigators  of  his  day,  which  have  thrown 
so  much  light  on  the  history  of  the  discovery  of  the  New  World. 

Similar  good  effects  have  been  produced  by  the  story  of  the 
voyage  of  Admiral  Pedro  Bartolom^  do  Fonte,  from  the  Pacific 
to  the  Atlantic,  through  lakes  and  rivers  extending  across  North 
America,  which  may  also  be  here  mentioned,  though  it  belongs 
properly  to  a  later  period  of  the  history ;  as  the  voyage  was  said  to 
have  been  performed  in  1640,  and  the  account  first  appeared  in  a 
periodical  work  entitled — Monthly  Miscellany,  ot  Memoirs  of  the 
Curious  —  published  at  London,  in  1708.  This  account  is  very 
confused,  and  badly  written,  and  is  filled  with  absurdities  and  con- 
tradictions, which  should  have  prevented  it  from  receiving  credit  at 
any  time  since  its  appearance :  yet,  as  will  be  shown,  it  was  serious- 
ly examined  and  defended,  so  recently  as  in  the  middle  of  the  last 
century,  by  eminent  scientific  men ;  and  some  faith  continued  to 
be  attached  to  it  for  many  years  afterwards.  So  far  as  its  details 
can  be  understood,  they  are  to  the  following  efiect :  — 

Admiral  Fonte  sailed  from  Callao,  near  Lima,  in  April,  1640, 
with  four  vessels,  under  orders,  from  the  viceroy  of  Peru,  to  repair 


1640.J 


STORT  or  THE  TOTAGE  OP  F0NT£. 


m 


to  the  North  Pacific,  for  the  purpose  of  oxptoring  its  Araerican 
coasts,  and  of  intercepting  certain  vessels  whiciv  were  reported  to 
liave  been  equipped  at  Boston,  in  New  I^ngland,  in  search  of  a! 
north-west  passage  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific.  FrcMn  Calhto 
he  proceeded  to  Cape  San  Lucas,  where  he  detached  a  Yessel  to 
explore  the  Californian  Gulf;  thence,  continuing  his  vc^t^  along 
the  west  coast,  he  passed  about  two  hundred  and  sixty  leagues^  in 
crooked  channels,  among  a  collection  of  islands  called  by  hiinl  the 
Archipelago  of  St.  Lazarus ;  and  beyond  them  he  found,  under 
the  53d  degree  of  latitude,  the  mouth  of  a  great  river,  whicb  he 
named  Rio  de  hs  Reyes  —  River  of  Kings.  Having  despatched  his 
lieutenant,  Bernardo,  with  one  vessel,  to  trace  the  coast  on  the 
Pacific  farther  north,  he  entered  the  great  river,  and  ascended  it 
north-eastward,  to  a  large  lake,  called,  from  the  beauty  of  its 
shores.  Lake  Belle,  containing  many  islands,  and  surrounded  by  a 
fine  country,  the  inhabitants  of  which  were  kind  and  hospitable. 
On  the  south  shore  of  the  lake  was  the  large  town  of  Conasset, 
where  the  admit  ol  left  his  vessels ;  thence  he  proceeded,  (in  what 
manner  he  does  not  say,)  with  some  of  his  men,  down  a  river 
called  the  Parmentier,  ^wing  from  Lake  Belle  eastward  into 
another  lake,  to  which  he  gave  his  own  name,  and  thence,  through 
a  passage  called  the  Strait  of  Ronguilh,  in  honor  of  one  of  his 
captains,  to  the  sea. 

On  entering  the  sea,  the  admiral  learned,  from  some  Indians^ 
"  that,  a  little  way  off,  lay  a  great  ship,  where  there  had  never  been 
one  before ;  '*  and,  on  boarding  her,  he  found  only  ait  old  man  and 
a  youth,  who  told  him  that  they  came  from  the  town  called  Boston, 
in  New  England.  On  the  following  day,  the  captain,  named 
Nicholas  Shapley,  arrived,  with  the  owner  of  the  ship,  Seymour 
Gibbons,  *<  a  fine  gentleman,  and  major-general  of  the  largest 
colony  in  New  England,  called  Maltechwetts,"  between  whom  and 
the  admiral  a  stru^le  of  courtesy  was  begun.  The  Spanish  com- 
mander had  been  ordered  to  make  prize  of  any  people  seeking  for 
a  north-west  or  a  west  passage ;  but  he  would  look  on  the  Bosto- 
nians  as  merchants^  trading  for  skins;  so  he  made  magnificent 
presents  to  them  all,  and;  having  received,  in  return,  their  charts 
and  journals,  he  went  back  to  his  ships,  in  Lake  Belle,  and  thence, 
down  the  Rio  de  los  Reyes,  to  the  sea. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  lieutenant,  Bernardo,  had  ascended  another 
river,  called,  by  him,  Rio  de  Haro,  into  a  lake  named  Lake  Velascoi, 
situated  under  the  61st  degree  of  latitude,  from  which  he  went,  in 


86 


TOTAOE   or  JUAN  DK  FCOA. 


[1698 


'%   m 


'M 


canoes,  as  far  as  the  79th  degree,  where  the  land  was  seen,  "still 
trending  north,  and  the  ice  rested  on  the  land."  He  was  also  as- 
sured "that  there  was  no  communication  out  of  the  Atlantic  Sea  by 
Davis's  Strait ;  for  the  natives  had  conducted  one  of  his  seamen  to 
the  head  of  Davis's  Strait,  which  terminated  m  a  fresh  lake,  of  about 
thirty  miles  in  circumference,  in  the  80th  degree  of  north  latitude ; 
and  there  were  prodigious  mountains  north  of  it."  These  accounts, 
added  to  his  own  observations,  led  Admiral  Font^  to  conclude  *'  that 
there  teas  no  passage  into  the  South  Sea  by  what  they  caU  the  north- 
west passage ; "  and  he  accordingly  returned,  with  his  vessels, 
through  the  Pacific,  to  Peru.  . 

Such  are  the  principal  circumstances  related  in  the  account  of 
Admiral  Fonte's  voyage,  which  was,  for  some  time  after  its  appear- 
ance, received  as  true,  and  copied  into  all  works  on  Northern 
America.  In  1750,  a  French  translation  of  the  account,  with  a 
chart  drawn  from  it,  and  a  memoir,  in  support  of  its  correctness, 
were  presented  to  the  Academy  of  Sciences  of  Paris  by  Messrs. 
DeUsle  and  Buache,  in  consequence  of  which,  the  various  Spanish 
repositories  of  papers  respecting  America  were  carefully  examined, 
in  search  of  information  on  the  subject ;  and,  in  all  the  voyages  of 
discovery  along  the  north-west  coasts  of  the  continent,  during 
the  last  century,  endeavors  were  made  to  discover  the  mouth  of  the 
Rio  de  los  Reyes.  These  labors,  however,  were  vain.  The  exist- 
ence of  a  number  of  islands  near  the  position  assigned  to  the 
Archipelago  of  St.  Lazarus,  and  of  a  large  river,  (the  SkiJeine,) 
entering  the  ocean  near  the  56th  parallel,  indeed,  seems  to  favor 
the  supposition  that  some  voyage,  of  which  we  have  no  record, 
may  have  been  made  to  that  part  of  the  Pacific  before  1708 ;  but 
the  rivers  and  lakes  through  which  Font6  was  said  to  have  passed  — 
his  town  of  Conasset — and  his  Boston  ship — are  now  generally 
believed  to  have  all  emanated  from  the  brain  of  James  Petiver,  a 
naturalist  of  some  eminence,  and  one  of  the  chief  contributors  to 
the  Monthly  Miscellany. 

The  account  of  the  voyage  and  discoveries  of  Juan  de  Fuca,  on 
the  north-western  side  of  America,  in  1592,  was,  for  a  long  time, 
considered  as  less  worthy  of  credit  than  those  above  noticed.  More 
recent  examinations  in  that  part  of  the  world  have,  however,  caused 
it  to  be  removed  from  the  class  of  fictions ;  although  it  is  certainly 
erroneous  as  regards  the  principal  circumstance  related.  All  the 
information  respecting  this  voyage  is  derived  from  "A  Note  made  by 
AEchael  Lock,  the  elder,  touching  the  Strait  of  Sea  commonly  called 


1592.] 


▼OTAOE   or   JUAN  DE   TVOJL. 


97 


V 


Fretum  Anion,  in  the  South  Sea,  through  the  North-wett  Postage  of 
Meta  Incognita" — published  in  1625,  in  the  celebrated  historical 
and  geographical  collection  called  The  Pilgrima,  by  Samuel 
Purchas.* 

Mr.  Lock  there  relates  that  he  met,  at  Venice,  in  April,  1596, 
"  an  old  man,  about  sixty  years  of  age,  called,  commonly,  Jvan  de 
Fuca,  but  named,  properly,  Apostolot  Valerianos,  of  nation  a 
Greek,  born  in  Cephalonia,  of  profession  a  mariner,  and  an  ancient 
pilot  of  ships,"  who,  "in  long  talks  and  conferences,"  declared  that 
he  had  been  in  the  naval  service  of  Spain,  in  the  West  Indies,  forty 
years,  and  that- he  was  one  of  the  crew  of  the  galleon  Santa  Anna, 
when  she  wa^  taken  by  Cavendish,  near  Cape  San  Lucas,  in  1587, 
on  which  occasion  "  he  had  lost  sixty  thousand  ducats  of  his  own 
goods."  After  his  return  to  Mexico,  he  was  despatched,  by  the 
viceroy,  with  three  vessels,  **  to  discover  the  Strait  of  Anian,  along 
the  coast  of  the  South  Sea,  and  to  fortify  that  strait,  to  resist  the 
passage  and  proceeding  of  the  English  nation,  which  were  feared 
to  pass  through  that  strait  into  the  South  Sea."  This  expedition, 
however,  proving  abortive,  he  was  again  sent,  in  1592,  with  a  small 
caravel,  for  the  same  purpose,  in  which  "  he  followed  his  course 
west  and  north-west,"  along  the  coasts  of  Mexico  and  California, 
"  until  he  came  to  the  latitude  of  47  degrees ;  and,  there  finding 
tliat  the  land  trended  north  and  north-east,  with  a  broad  inlet  of 
sea,  between  47  and  48  degrees  of  latitude,  he  entered  thereinto, 
sailing  therein  more  than  twenty  days,  and  found  that  land  trending 
still  sometime  north-west,  and  north-east,  and  north,  and  also  east, 
and  south-eastward,  and  very  much  broader  sea  than  was  at  the 
said  entrance,  and  he  passed  by  divers  islands  in  that  sailing ;  and, 
at  the  entrance  of  this  said  strait,  there  is,  on  the  north-west  coast 
thereof,  a  great  head-land  or  island,  with  an  exceeding  high  pinna- 
cle, or  spired  rock,  like  a  pillar  thereupon.  *  *  *  *  Being  entered 
thus  far  into  the  said  strait,  and  being  come  into  the  North  Sea 
already,  and  finding  the  sea  wide  enough  every  where,  and  to  be 
about  thirty  or  forty  leagues  wide  in  the  mouth  of  the  straits,  where 
he  entered,  he  thought  he  had  now  well  discharged  his  office ;  and 
that,  not  being  armed  to  resist  the  force  of  the  savage  people  that 
might  happen,  he  therefore  set  sail,  and  returned  to  Acapulco." 

The  Greek  went  on  to  say  that,  upon  his  arrival  in  Mexico,  the  vice- 


•  The  whole  note  wUl  be  found  among  the  Printfa  and  lUuatrations,  in  the  latter- 
put  of  thii  Tolome,  under  the  letter  A. 


68 


TOTAGB    or   JUAN   DK   FUCA. 


[1593. 


ij    '! 


I;!::];    ■! 


if  J 


roy  had  welcomed  him,  and  promised  him  a  great  reward ;  but  that, 
after  waiting  in  vain  for  two  years,  he  had  stole  away  to  Europe, 
and,  "  understanding  the  noble  mind  of  the  queen  of  England,  and 
of  her  wars  against  the  Spaniards,  and  hoping  that  her  majesty 
would  do  him  justice  for  his  goods  lost  by  Captain  Candish,  he 
would  be  content  to  go  into  England,  and  serve  her  majesty  in  that 
voyage  for  the  discovery  perfectly  of  the  north-west  passage  into 
the  South  Sea,  if  she  would  furnish  him  with  only  one  ship  of  forty 
tons'  burden,  and  a  pinnace ;  and  that  he  would  perform  it  in  thirty 
days'  time,  from  one  end  to  the  other  of  the  strait."  Mr.  Lock 
says  that,  on  receiving  this  account,  he  endeavored  to  interest  Sir 
Walter  Raleigh,  and  Jiner  eminent  persons  in  England,  in  behalf 
of  the  Greek  pilot,  and  to  have  him  employed  on  a  voyage  su'ch 
as  he  proposed  to  undertake ;  but  he  was  unable  to  do  so,  and,  by 
the  last  accounts,  the  old  man  was  dying  in  Cephalonia,  in  1602. 

These  are  the  most  material  circumstances  respecting  Juan  de 
Fuca  and  his  voyage,  as  related  by  Mr.  Lock,  who  was  an  intelli- 
gent  and  respectable  merchant  engaged  in  the  Levant  trade.* 
Other  English  writers,  of  the  same  time,  allude  to  the  subject ;  but 
they  afford  no  additional  particulars,  nor  has  any  thing  been  since 
learned,  calculated  to  prove  directly  even  that  such  a  person  as 
Juan  de  Fuca  ever  existed.  On  the  contrary,  the  author  of  the 
Introduction  to  the  Journ&l  of  Galiano  and  Valdes,  who  loses  no 
opportunity  to  exalt  the  merits  of  his  countrymen  as  discoverers, 
after  examining  many  papers  in  the  archives  of  the  Indies,  relating 
to  the  period  given  as  the  date  of  the  voyage,  pronounces  the  whole 
to  be  a  fabrication.  The  account  attracted  little  attention  in  Eng- 
land, and  was  almost  unknown,  out  of  that  kingdom,  until  after 
the  publication  of  the  journals  of  the  last  expedition  of  Cook,  who 
conceived  that  he  had,  by  his  examinations  on  the  north-western 
coasts  of  America,  ascertained  its  falsehood.  More  recent  exami- 
nations in  that  quarter  have,  however,  served  to  establish  a  strong 
presumption  in  favor  of  its  authenticity  and  general  correctness, 
so  far  as  the  supposed  narrator  could  himself  have  known ;  for 
they  show  that  the  geographical  descriptions  contained  in  it  are 
as  nearly  conformable  witli  the  truth,  as  those  of  any  other  account 
of  a  voyage  written  in  the  early  part  of  the  seventeenth  century. 

Thus  Juan  de  Fuca  says  that,   between  the  47th  and  48th 

*  He  was,  for  some  time,  the  English  consul  at  Aleppo,  and  was  an  intimate  friend 
of  Haklayt,  for  whom  he  translated  the  Decades  of  Pedro  Martir,  and  famished  other 
papers  published  by  that  collector. 


1  .; 


!■  ,:     li 


o.] 


COMriRllATION    or   rUCA  S   ACCOUNT. 


89 


degrees  of  latitude,  he  entered  a  broad  inlet  of  sea,  in  which  he 
sailed  for  twenty  days,  and  found  the  land  trending  north-west,  and 
north-east,  and  north,  and  east,  and  south-east,  and  that,  in  thb 
course,  he  passed  numerous  islands.  Now,  the  fact  is,  that,  between 
the  46th  and  49th  degrees,  a  broad  inlet  of  sea  does  extend  fiom 
the  Pacific,  eastward,  apparently  penetrating  the  American  conti- 
nent to  the  distance  of  more  than  one  hundred  miles,  after  which 
it  turns  north-westward,  and,  continuing  in  that  direction  about 
two  hundred  and  fifty  miles  farther,  it  again  joins  the  Pacific  Ocean. 
The  differences  as  to  the  position  and  course  of  the  inlet,  between 
the  two  descriptions  here  compared,  are  few  and  slight,  and  are 
certainly  all  within  the  limits  of  supposable  error  on  the  part  of  the 
Greek,  especially  considering  his  advanced  age,  and  the  circum- 
stance that  he  spoke  only  from  recollection ;  while,  on  the  other 
hand,  the  coincidences  are  too  strong  to  be  attributable  only  to 
chance.  The  pilot,  indeed,  asserts  that  through  this  inlet  he  sailed' 
to  the  Athintic,  but  he  does  not  pretend  that  he  reached  any  known 
coast,  or  previously-determined  point  of  that  ocean ;  so  that  he  is 
liable  only  to  the  charge  of  having  made  an  erroneous  estimate  of 
the  extent  and  value  of  his  discovery,  which  he  might  well  have 
done,  without  any  intention  to  deceive,  as  the  breadth  of  the  North 
American  continent  was  then  unknown. 

Some  false  reports,  such  as  those  above  mentioned,  respecting 
the  discovery  of  a  northern  passage  between  the  two  oceans,  and 
the  existence  of  rich  nations  in  its  vicinity,  together  with  a  desire 
to  lessen  the  dangers  of  the  navigation  along  the  western  side  of 
California,  by  providing  the  ships  in  the  Philippine  trade  with  proper 
descriptions  of  the  coasts,  induced  King  Philip  II.  of  Spain,  in 
1595,  to  order  that  measures  should  be  taken  for  a  complete  survey 
of  it.*    There  were,  also,  other  reasons  for  examining  that  part  of 

*  "  His  majesty  knew  that  the  viceroys  of  Mexico  had  endeavorad  to  discover  a 
northern  passage;  and  he  had  found,  among  his  father's  papers,  a  declaration  of 
certain  strangers,  to  the  effect  that  they  had  been  driven,  by  violent  winds,  from  the 
codfish  coast,  [about  Newfoundland,]  on  the  Atlantic,  to  the  South  Sea,  through  the 
Strait  of  Anian,  which  is  beyond  Cape  Mendocino,  and  had,  on  their  way,  seen  a 
rich  and  populous  city,  well  fortified,  and  inhabited  by  a  numerous  and  civilized 
nation,  who  had  treated  them  well ;  as  also  many  other  things  worthy  to  be  seen  and 
known.  His  majesty  had  also  been  informed  that  ships,  sailing  fVom  China  to  Mex- 
ico, ran  great  risks,  particularly  near  Cape  Mendocino,  where  the  itorms  are  most 
violent,  and  that  it  would  be  advantageous  to  have  that  coast  surveyed  thence  to 
Acapulco,  so  that  the  ships,  mostly  belonging  to  bis  majesty,  should  find  places  fi>r 
relief  and  refreshment  when  needed."  Whereupon,  his  msijes^  ordefed  the  count 
de  Monterey,  viceroy  of  Mexico,  to  have  those  coasts  surveyed,  at  his  own  expense, 
with  all  care  and  diligence,  &c.  —  Torquemada,  vol.  i.  p.  698. 

12 


1l 


'    • 


■  1 


90 


riRST   TOTAGE    Or   VIZOAINO. 


[1696. 


the  continent,  as  the  Spaniards  were  then  engaged  in  the  settlement 
of  New  Mexico,  or  the  country  traversed  by  the  River  Bravo  del 
Norte,  in  which  their  colonies  extended  nearly  to  the  40th  degree 
of  latitude ;  and  they  had  no  clear  idea  of  the  distance  between 
that  region  and  the  Pacific. 

The  count  de  Monterey,  viceroy  of  Mexico,  in  consequence, 
despatched  three  vessels  from  Acapulco,  in  the  spring  of  1596, 
under  the  command  of  Sebastian  Vizcaino,  a  distinguished  officer, 
who  had  been  in  the  ship  Santa  Anna,  when  she  was  taken  and 
burnt  by  Cavendish,  off  Cape  San  Lucas.  Nothing,  however,  was 
gained  by  this  expedition.  For  reasons  of  which  we  are  not 
informed  by  the  Spanish  historians,  Vizcaino  did  not  proceed 
beyond  the  Californian  Gulf,  on  the  shores  of  which  he  endeavored 
to  plant  colonies,  first  at  a  place  called  St.  Sebastian,  and  after- 
wards at  La  Paz,  or  Santa  Cruz,  where  Cortes  had  made  a  similar 
attempt  sixty  years  before :  but  both  these  places  were  soon  aban- 
doned, on  account  of  the  sterility  of  the  surrounding  country,  and 
the  ferocity  of  the  natives ;  and  Vizcaino  returned  to  Mexico  before 
the  end  of  the  year.''^ 

The  viceroy  had  most  probably  hoped,  by  means  of  this  voyage, 
to  escape  the  infliction  of  the  heavy  expenses  of  an  expedition 
such  as  that  which  he  was  enjoined  to  make  by  the  royal  decree  ; 
but  King  Philip  II.  died  in  1598,  and  one  of  the  first  acts  of  the 
reign  of  his  successor,  PhiUp  III.,  was  a  peremptory  order  for  the 
immediate  despatch  of  a  squadron  from  Mexico,  to  complete  the 
survey  of  the  west  coasts  of  the  continent,  agreeably  to  the  previous 
instructions.  The  viceroy  thereupon  commenced  preparations  for 
the  purpose  on  an  extended  scale  of  equipment.  Two  large  ships 
and  a  fragata,  or  small  vessel,  were  provided  at  Acapulco,  and 
furnished  with  all  the  requisites  for  a  long  voyage  of  discovery ;  and, 
in  addition  to  their  regular  crews,  a  number  of  pilots,  draughtsmen, 
and  educated  priests,  were  engaged,  forming  together,  says  the 

*  This  expedition  is  thus  noticed  by  Hakluyt,  vol.  iii.  p.  522 :  — 
"  We  have  seen  a  letter  written  the  8th  of  October,  1597,  at  a  town  called  Puebla 
de  los  Angdes,  eighteen  leagues  from  Mexico,  making  mention  of  the  islands  of  Cal- 
ifornia, situated  two  or  three  hundred  leagues  from  the  main  land  of  New  Spain,  in 
the  South  Sea,  as  that  thither  have  been  sent,  before  that  time,  some  people  to  con- 
quer them,  which,  with  loss  of  some  twenty  men,  were  forced  back,  after  that  they 
had  well  Tisited,  and  found  those  islands  or  countries  to  be  very  rich  of  gold  and 
silver  mines,  and  of  very  fur  Oriental  pearls,  which  were  caught,  in  good  quantity, 
upon  one  fathom  and  a  half,  passing,  in  beauty,  the  pearls  of  Margarita.  The  report 
thereof  caused  the  viceroy  of  Mexico  to  send  a  citisen  of  Mexico,  with  two  hundred 
Bwn,  to  ocnquer  the  nne." 


1603.] 


SKOOND  TOTAGE   OF   yiSOAINO. 


M 


historian  Torqueniada,  "  the  most  enlightened  corps  ever  railed  in 
New  Spain."  The  direction  of  the  whole  expedition  was  intrusted 
to  Sebastian  Vizcaino,  as  captain>general,  who  sailed  in  the  largest 
ship ;  the  other  being  commanded  by  Toribio  Gomez  de  Corvan, 
as  admiral — an  office  equivalent  in  rank  to  that  of  vice-admiral  in 
the  British  service:  the  fragata  was  under  ensign  Martin  de 
Agtiilar.* 

All  things  being  prepared,  the  vessels  took  their  departure  from 
Acapulco  on  the  5th  of  May,  1603,  and,  after  many  troubles  and 
delays  at  various  places  on  the  Mexican  coast,  they  were  assembled 
in  the  small  Bay  of  San  Bernab^,  now  called  Port  San  Jos6,  imme- 
diately east  of  Cape  San  Lucas,  the  southern  extremity  of  the 
Californian  peninsula.  There  they  remained  until  the  5th  of  July, 
when  they  rounded  the  cape,  and  the  survey  of  the  west  coast  was 
commenced  from  that  point.  The  prosecution  of  the  enterprise 
was  thenceforward  attended  by  constant  difficulties:  the  scurvy, 
as  usual,  soon  broke  out  among  the  crews ;  and  the  Spaniards  had 
their  courage  and  perseverance  severely  tried  by  their  "chief 
enemy,  the  north-west  wind,"  which  was  raised  up,  says  Torque- 
mada,  "by  the  foe  of  the  human  race,  in  order  to  prevent  the 
advance  of  the  ships,  and  to  delay  the  discovery  of  those  countries, 
and  the  conversion  of  their  inhabitants  to  the  Catholic  faith." 

Vizcaino  and  his '  followers,  however,  bore  up  nobly  against  all 
these  obstacles,  and  executed  the  duty  confided  to  them  most 
fnithfully.  Proceeding  slowly  northward,  they  reached  the  exten- 
sive Bay  of  La  Magdakna,  between  the  34th  and  35th  parallels  of 
latitude,  of  which  Vizcaino's  survey  was,  until  recently,  the  only 
one  upon  record ;  and  before  the  end  of  August,  the  vessels  which 
had  been  separated  almost  ever  since  quitting  Cape  San  Lucas, 
were  again  united  in  a  harbor  in  the  island  called  Isla  de  Cedros, 
or  Isle  of  Cedars,  by  Cabrillo,  but  now  generally  known  as  Ma  de 
Cerros,  or  Isle  of  Mountains.  Continuing  their  examination,  they 
foundi  a  bay  near  the  31st  degree  of  latitude,  which  they  named  the 
Port  of  the  Eleven  Thousand  Virgins,  now  called  Port  San  Quintin, 
and  said  to  be  an  excellent  harbor ;  and  farther  north  they  entered 
the  Port  San  Miguel  of  Cabrillo,  to  which  they  assigned  the  appella- 


•  Torquemada,  vol.  i.  p.  694.  —  Introduction  to  the  Journal  of  Galiano  and  Valdes, 
p.  60.  —  Torquemada's  accounts  are  derived'  chiefly  from  the  Journal  of  Fraj  An- 
tonio de  la  Asencion,  the  chaplain  of  one  of  the  ships.    The  author  of  the  Introduc- 
tion, &c.,  had  recourse  to  the  original  notes  of  the  expedition,  from  which  he  con 
atructed  a  chart  of  the  coast  surveyed. 


99 


VIIOAIMO   REAOHBS   MONTEBKT. 


[1603. 


If     . 


tion  of  Port  San  Diego.  There  Vizcaino  receiTed  accounts,  from 
the  natives,  of  people  residing  in  the  interior,  who  had  beards, 
wore  clothes,  and  dwelt  in  cities ;  but  he  could  learn  no  further 
particulars,  and  was,  upon  the  whole,  inclined  to  believe  that, 
unless  the  Indians  were  deceiving  him,  theno  people  must  be  the 
Spaniards  recently  settled  in  New  Mexico,  on  the  River  Hravo  del 
Norte. 

Having  minutely  surveyed  Port  San  Diego,  the  Spaniards  iiuitted 
it  on  the  Ist  of  December,  and  sailed  through  the  Archipelago 
of  Santa  Barbara,  in  one  of  the  islands  of  which  Cabrillo  died 
sixty  years  previous;  then  doubling  the  Cape  do  Galera  of  that 
navigator,  to  which  they  gave  the  name  of  Cape  Conception,  now 
borne  by  it,  they  anchored,  in  the  middle  of  the  month,  in  a 
spacious  and  secure  harbor,  near  the  37  th  parallel,  where  they 
remained  some  time,  engaged  in  refitting  their  vessels  and  obtain!  i.^ 
a  supply  of  water.  This  harbor  —  the  Port  of  Pines  of  CabriHr 
was  named  Port  Monterey  by  Vizcaino,  in  honor  of  the  viceroy  of 
Mexico;  and  as,  before  reaching  it,  sixteen  of  the  crews  of  the 
vessels  had  died,  and  many  of  the  others  were  incapable  of  duty 
from  disease,  it  was  determined  that  Corvan,  the  admiral,  should 
return  to  Mexico  in  his  ship,  carrying  the  invalids,  with  letters  to  tho 
viceroy,  urging  the  immediate  establishment  of  colonies  and  garrisons 
at  San  Diego  and  Monterey.  Corvan,  accordingly,  on  the  29th, 
sailed  for  Acapulco,  where  he  arrived  after  a  long  and  perilous 
voyage,  with  but  few  '^i  his  men  alive ;  whibt  Vizcaino,  with  his 
ship  and  the  fragata,  prosecuted  their  exploration  along  the  coast 
towards  the  north. 

On  the  3d  of  January,  1603,  after  the  departure  of  Corvan,' 
Vizcaino,  accompanied  by  the  small  vessel  under  Aguilar,  quitted 
Monterey;  but,  ere  proceeding  much  farther  north,  they  were 
driven  back  by  a  severe  gale,  in  the  course  of  which  the  two 
vessels  were  separated.  The  ship  took  refuge  in  the  Bay  of  San 
Francisco,  which  seems  to  have  been  then  well  known ;  and  search 
was  made  for  the  wreck  of  the  San  Augustin,  which  had  been  there 
lost,  as  already  mentioned,  in  1595,  duriLg  licr  voyage  from  the 
Philippine  Islands  to  Acapulco.  Finding  lo  ir*.  v.^  f  that  vc  .Ci, 
Vizcaino  again  put  to  sea ;  and,  passing  a  pK^w.ontory,  which  he  sup- 
posed to  be  Cape  Mendocino,  he,  on  the  20th  of  January,  reached 
a  high,  white  bluff,  in  latitude,  as  ascertained  by  solar  observation, 
of  42  degrees,  which,  in  honor  of  the  saint  of  that  day,  was  named 
Ctujpe  San  Sebastian.    By  this  time,  few  of  his  men  were  fit  for 


1003.] 


TISOAINO    HETVRNI   TO   MEXICO. 


9a 


■ervice;  the  weather  was  stormy,  the  cold  wai  Mvore,  the  pro- 
viiiona  were  nearly  exhaut>4c(l ;  and,  ai  the  imall  veuel  did  not 
appear,  the  commander,  with  tfie  niitent  of  hii  officers,  resolved  to 
direct  his  course  towuitto  Mexico.  lie  <lid  so,  and  arrived  at 
Acapulco  on  the  21st  of  March. 

The  fragata,  or  small  vt  sol,  also  r<  tK  had  Mexico  about  the  sami 
time,  having,  however,  lost,  by  sickness,  her  contfiander,  Martin  de 
Aguiiar,  her  pilot,  Flores,  and  the  greater  part  of  htr    r«W.     Tor- 
qucmada's  account  of  her  voyage,  after  parting  with  Vizcaino's 
ship,  is  short,  and  by  no  means  clear ;  but  the  i  «tai.  «s  therein 

rein  tod  have  attracted  so  much  attention,  that  '  translation  of  it 
''  Olid  be  here  presented.     The  historian  says, — 

"  I.  he  fragata  parted  from  the  capitana,  [Vizcaino's  ship,]  and, 
suppjding  that  she  had  gone  onward,  sailed  in  pursuit  ot  her. 
Being  in  the  latitude  of  41  degrees,  the  wind  began  t  blo«v  t'rom 
the  south-west ;  and  the  fragata,  being  unable  to  withstand  the 
waves  on  her  beam,  ran  before  the  wind,  until  she  foinx  shelter 
under  the  land,  and  anchored  near  Cape  Mendocino,  behitx  a  great 
rock,  where  she  remained  until  the  gale  had  passed  over.  When 
the  wind  had  become  less  violent,  they  continued  their  voyage  close 
blong  the  shore;  and,  on  the  19th  of  January,  the  pil  t,  Ai  tonio 
Flores,  found  that  they  were  in  the  latitude  of  43  degrees,  \  here 
the  land  formed  a  cape  or  point,  which  was  named  Cape  Bl  nco. 
From  that  point,  the  coast  begins  to  turn  to  the  north-west ;  .  nd 
near  it  was  discovered  a  rapid  and  abundant  river,  with  ash-tn  s, 
willows,  brambles,  and  other  trees  of  Castile,  on  its  banks,  which 
they  endeavored  to  enter,  but  could  not,  from  the  force  of  tl  e 
current.  Ensign  Martin  de  Aguiiar,  the  commander,  and  Antonio 
Flores,  the  pilot,  seeing  that  they  had  already  reached  a  higher 
latitude  than  had  been  ordered  by  the  viceroy,  in  his  instructions, 
that  the  capitana  did  not  appear,  and  that  the  number  of  the  sick 
was  great,  agreed  to  return  to  Acapulco ;  and  they  did  so,  as  I 
shall  hereafter  show.  It  is  supposed  that  this  river  is  the  one 
leading  to  a  great  city,  which  was  discovered  by  the  Dutch  when 
they  were  driven  thither  by  storms,  and  that  it  is  the  Strait  of 
Anian,  through  which  the  ship  passed,  in  sailing  from  the  North 
Sea  to  the  South  Sea;  and  that  the  city  called  Quivira  is  in 
those  puts ;  and  that  this  is  the  region  referred  to  in  the  account 
which  hm  majesty  read,  and  which  induced  him  to  order  this 
expedition." 

This  accowit  of  the  discovery  of  a  great  river,  near  the  43d 


94 


SUPPOSED   RIVER   OF    AQUILAR. 


[1603. 


i       ' 


,  ^ 


degree  of  latitude,  was,  for  a  long  time,  universally  credited,  and 
excited  many  speculations.  The  supposed  river  was  first,  as  Tor- 
quemada  says,  generally  believed  to  be  the  long-sought  Strait  of 
Anian.  It  was  then,  upon  the  strength  of  a  statement  made  by  the 
captain  of  a  Manilla  ship,  in  1620,  universally  considered  as  the 
western  mouth  of  a  passage,  or  chaimel,  connecting  the  ocean  with 
the  northern  extrcn»ity  of  the  Culifornian  Gulf;  and,  accordingly, 
during  the  remainder  of  the  seventeenth  century,  California  was 
represented,  on  all  maps,  as  an  island,  of  which  Cape  Blanco  was 
f-zi  northern  end.  When  this  error  had  been  corrected,  the  exist- 
0  ::e  of  a  great  river,  flowing  from  the  centre  of  America  into  the 
Pacific,  under  the  43d  parallel,  was  again  affirmed  by  some  geogra- 
phers ;  while  others  again  placed  at  this  point  the  western  entrance 
of  a  passage  leading  to  the  Atlantic. 

It  is  now  certain  that  no  such  stream  or  channel  as  that  which 
Aguilar  is  reported  to  have  seen,  falls  into  the  Pacific  within  three 
'degrees  of  the  43d  parallel ;  although  the  mouths  of  two  small 
rivers  are  situated  near  the  point  where  that  line  crosses  the  western 
coast  of  the  continent.  Several  head-Jands  project  into  the  ocean, 
not  far  from  the  positions  assigned  to  the  Capes  Blanco  and  San 
Sebastian.  The  former  may  have  been  the  promontory,  in  latitude 
of  42  degrees  52  minutes,  on  which  Vancouver,  in  1792,  bestowed 
the  name  of  Cape  Orford. 

On  comparing  the  accounts  of  Vizcaino's  voyage  with  those  of 
Cabrillo's,  it  appears  that  the  same,  or  very  nearly  the  same,  por- 
tions of  the  American  coast  were  seen  by  both  commanders.  The 
expedition  of  Vizcaino  was,  however,  conducted  in  a  much  more 
efficient  manner  tlian  the  other ;  and  a  mass  of  valuable  informa- 
tion, respecting  the  geography  of  the  western  side  of  California, 
was  collected,  in  the  shape  of  notes,  plans,  and  sketches,  upon 
which  were  founded  the  first  maps  of  that  coast  approaching 
to  correctness. 

Vizcaino,  after  his  return  to  Mexico,  endeavored  to  prevail  upon 
the  viceroy  to  establish  colonies  and  garrisons  on  the  western  side 
of  California,  at  places  which  he  recommended,  in  order  to  facili- 
tate the  trade  with  India,  and  to  prevent  the  occupation  of  the 
American  coasts  by  people  of  other  nations.  His  eflforts,  with  this 
view,  however,  produced  no  effect,  as  the  viceroys  never  encouraged 
such  enterprises,  being  generally  obliged  to  pay  the  costs  them- 
selves ;  and  Vizcaino,  in  consequence,  went  to  Spain,  where,  alter 
many  years  of  solicitation,  he  at  length  procured  the  royal  mandate, 


1608.] 


DKATH    Of   VIZCAINO. 


96 


and  a  promise  of  means  for  the  execution  of  his  projects.  Armed 
with  these,  he  hastened  back  to  Mexico,  and  began  his  prepara- 
tions; but,  while  thus  engaged,  he  was  seized  with  a  sickness, 
of  which  he  died  in  1603,  and  the  enterprise  was  then  aban- 
doned. 

The  Spanish  government,  at  the  period  of  Vizcaino's  expeditions, 
appears,  indeed,  to  have  been  seriously  interested  in  the  exploration 
of  the  Pacific,  with  which  object  several  voyages  were  made  from 
Peru  and  Mexico.  In  1595,  Alvaro  de  Mendana  discovered  the 
group  of  islands  in  the  southern  division  of  that  ocean,  to  which  he 
gave  the  name  of  Mas  de  las  Marquesas,  (Islands  of  the  Mar- 
chionesses,) in  token  of  his  admiration  of  the  beauty  and  grace  of 
their  women.  In  1605,  Pedro  Fernandez  de  Quiros  visited  many 
other  islands  in  the  same  sea,  not  previously  known,  among  which 
were,  probably,  those  now  called  Otaheite  and  Owyhee :  he  also 
believed  that  he  had  ascertained  the  existence  of  a  great  southern 
continent,  which  he  named  Australia  del  Espiritu  Santo ;  and,  like 
Vizcaino,  he  spent  many  years  at  Madrid,  in  endeavors  to  obtain 
from  the  government  the  command  of  an  expedition  for  the  occu- 
pation of  this  new  land. 


•1 


\A 


(;/  ■■■' 
f      >■ 

If:     :;       . 

I :: 

i 
I 

■  '    1 

n     . 

96 


CHAPTER    III 


1608  TO  1768. 


The  North- West  Coasts  of  North  America  remain  nearly  neglected  during  the  whole 
of  this  Period  —  Efforts  of  the  English  and  the  Dutch  to  find  new  Passages  into 
the  Pacific  —  Discovery  of  Hudson's  Bay  and  Baffin's  Bay  —  Discovery  of  the 
Passage  around  Cape  Horn  —  Establishment  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Trading  Com- 
pany—  Endeavors  of  the  Spaniards  to  settle  California  unsuccessful  —  The 
Jesuits  undertake  the  Reduction  of  California  —  Establishments  of  the  Jesuits  in 
the  Peninsula,  and  their  Expulsion  firom  the  Spanish  Dominions. 


For  more  than  a  hundred  and  sixty  years  after  the  death  of 
Vizcaino,  no  attempt  was  made,  by  the  Spaniards,  to  form  estab- 
lishments on  the  west  coast  of  California,  or  to  extend  their 
discoveries  in  that  part  of  America. 

Those  countries,  in  the  mean  time,  remained  unknown,  and 
almost  entirely  neglected,  by  the  civilized  world.  The  Spanish 
galleons,  on  their  way  from  Manilla  to  Acapulco,  annually  passed 
along  the  coasts  south  of  Cape  Mendocino,  which  were  described 
in  Spanish  works  on  the  navigation  of  the  Pacific ;  and  some  spots, 
farther  north,  were,  as  will  be  hereafter  particularly  shown,  visited 
by  the  Russians,  in  their  exploring  and  trading  voyages  from  Kamt- 
chatka :  but  no  new  information,  of  an  exact  nature,  was  obtained 
with  regard  to  those  regions,  and  they  were  represented  on  maps 
according  to  the  fancy  of  the  geographer,  or  to  the  degree  of 
faith  which  he  placed  in  the  last  fabrication  respecting  them. 
Numerous  were  the  stories,  gravely  related  and  published  in  France 
and  England,  of  powerful  nations,  of  great  rivers,  of  interior 
seas,  and  of  navigable  passages  connecting  the  Atlantic  with  the 
Pacific,  north  of  California.  The  most  remarkable  of  these  stories 
is  the  account  of  the  voyage  of  Admiral  Font^,  already  presented. 
Captain  Coxton,  a  veteran  bucanier,  who  flourished  in  the  latter 
part  of  the  seventeenth  century,  also  declared  that  he  had,  in  1688, 
sailed  from  the  North  Pacific,  far  eastward,  into  the  American 
continent,  through  a  river  which  ran  out  of  a  great  lake,  called  the 
Lake  of  Thoyaga,  containing  many  islands,  inhabited  by  a  numerous 


1616.]       Hudson's  bat  and  Baffin's  bat  discovered. 


97 


and  warlike  population ;  and,  upon  ths  strength  of  the  assertions  of 
this  worthy,  the  lake  and  river,  as  described  by  him,  were  laid  down 
on  many  of  the  maps  of  that  time.  North>west  America  was, 
indeed,  during  the  period  here  mentioned,  the  terra  incognUissimay 
the  favorite  scene  of  extraordinary  adventures  and  Utopian  ro* 
mances.  Bacon  there  placed  his  Atlantis ;  and  Brobdignag,  agree- 
ably to  the  very  precise  description  of  its  locality  furnished  by  its 
discoverer,  the  accomplished  and  veracious  Captain  Lemuel  Gulli- 
ver, must  have  been  situated  near  the  Strait  of  Fuca. 

The  Atlantic  Ocean,  and  its  American  coasts,  and  the  South 
Pacific,  were,  however,  not  neglected  by  the  Europeans  during  the 
seventeenth  century.  Soon  after  the  termination  of  Vizcaino's 
labors,  settlements  were  made,  in  many  places  on  the  Atlantic, 
between  the  Gulfs  of  Mexico  and  of  St.  Lawrence,  by  the  English, 
the  French,  and  the  Dutch,  generally  under  the  protection  of  charters 
from  the  governments  of  those  nations,  in  which  the  territories  of 
the  several  colonies  were  declared  to  extend  from  the  Atlantic 
westward  to  the  Pacific ;  and  some  of  the  most  valuable  of  the 
West  India  Islands  had  fallen  into  the  possession  of  the  same 
powers. 

Many  discoveries  were  likewise  eflfected,  within  this  period,  .on 
the  coasts  of  the  New  World,  and  in  the  adjoining  seas,  some 
of  which  were  of  great  and  immediate  importance,  while  the  others 
served  to  strengthen  the  expectation  that  a  north-west  passage,  or 
navigable  channel  of  communication  between  the  Atlantic  and  the 
Pacific,  north  of  America,  would  be  speedily  found.  Thus,  in 
1608,  Henry  Hudson  discovered,  or  rediscovered,  the  strait,  and 
the  bay  connected  by  it  with  the  Atlantic,  to  both  of  which  his 
name  is  now  attached ;  and,  eight  years  afterwards,  the  adventu- 
rous William  Baffin  penetrated,  through  the  arm  of  that  ocean 
now  called  BaffiiCs  Bay,  separating  Greenland  from  America,  into  a 
passage  extending  westward,  under  the  74th  parallel  of  latitude, 
where  his  ship  was  arrested  by  ice. 

The  results  of  the  voyages  of  Baffin,  and  other  navigators,  who 
followed  the  same  course,  were  not  calculated  to  increase  the  hope 
that  the  desired  passage  to  the  Pacific  would  be  found  opening 
into  Baffin's  Bay.  Strong  grounds  were,  however,  afforded  for  the 
expectation  that  it  might  be  discovered  in  one  of  the  arms  of 
Hudson's  Bay  which  had  not  been  completely  explored ;  and,  in 
consequence,  the  whole  region  surrounding  the  latter  sea  was,  in 
1669,  granted,  by  King  Charles  II.,  to  an  association  of  merchants 
13 


98 


PASSAGE    AROOND   CAPE    HORN   DISCOVERED. 


[1616. 


and  gentlemen,  Wyled — The  Company  of  Adventurers  of  England 
trading  into  Hudson's  Bay  —  with  the  object,*  expressed  in  the 
charter,  of  encouraging  the  search  for  a  northern  passage  to  the 
Pacific. 

The  most  important  discovery  made  in  the  seventeenth  century 
was  that  of  the  open  sea,  south  of  Magellan's  Strait,  through  which 
the  Dutch  navigators  Lemaire  and  Van  Schouten  sailed,  in  1616, 
from  the  Atlantic  into  the  Pacific,  around  the  island  promontory 
named  by  them  Cape  Horn,  in  honor  of  their  native  city  in 
Holland.  By  means  of  this  new  route,  the  perils  and  difficulties 
of  the  navigation  between  the  two  oceans  were  so  much  lessened, 
that  voyages  from  Europe  to  the  Pacific  were  no  longer  regarded 
as  very  hazardous  enterprises;  and  the  Spanish  possessions  and 
commerce  on  that  ocean  were  ever  after  annoyed  by  the  armed 
ships  of  nations  at  war  with  Spain,  or  by  pirates  and  smugglers  of 
various  classes  and  denominations. 

The  Gulf  of  California  became  the  principal  resort  of  the  Dutch 
pirates,  or,  rather,  privateers,  who,  under  the  name  of  Pichilingues,\ 
kept  the  inhabitants  of  the  adjacent  coasts  •. "  Mexico  in  constant 
anxiety.  For  the  purpose  of  dislodging  these  uvjpredators,  and  also 
of  ^obtaining  advantages  from  the  pearl  fishery  in  the  gulf,  several 
attempts  were  made,  by  the  government  of  Spain,  and  by  individ- 
uals in  Mexico,  to  establish  colonies,  garrisons,  and  fishing  or 
trading  posts,  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  peninsula  of  California. 
The  details  of  the  expeditions  for  these  purposes,  made  by  Vicuna 
and  Ortega  in  1631,  by  Barriga  and  Porter  in  1644,  by  PiSadero 
in  1664  and  1667,  by  Lucenilla  in  1668,  and  by  Atondo  in  1683, 
are  devoid  of  interest.  Many  pearls  were  obtained,  among  which 
are  some  of  the  most  valuable  in  the  regalia  of  Spain ;  but  the 
establishments  all  failed  from  want  of  funds,  from  the  extreme 
barrenness  of  the  soil,  and  the  determined  hostility  of  the  natives 
of  the  peninsula,  and,  above  all,  from  the  indolence  and  viciousness 
of  the  persons  employed  in  the  expeditions.  In  the  last  attempt 
of  this  kind,  under  the  direction  of  Don  T  idro  de  Atondo,  a  number 
of  settlers,  soldiers,  and  Jesuits,  were  carried  out  from  Mexico,  and 
distributed  at  points  on  the  gulf  where  the  establishments  were  to 
be  formed ;  but  these  stations  were  all  abandoned  before  the  end  of 
a  year,  and  it  was  thereupon  resolved,  in  a  council  of  the  chief 

*  See  Proofs  and  IIIustrationB,  under  the  letter   I,  No.  1. 
t  So  called  from  the  Bay  of  Pichilingue,  on  the  east  coast  of  the  Califomian 
peninsula,  which  was  the  principal  rendezvoOs  of  these  Dutch  pirates. 


1633.] 


JESUITS   IN  CALirOBNIA. 


99 


authorities  of  Mexico,  that  the  reduction  of  California  by  such 
means  was  impracticable. 

The  Jesuits,  who  had  accompanied  Atondo  to  California,  while 
concurring  in  this  opinion  with  the  council,  nevertheless  insisted 
that  the  desired  political  objects  might  be  attained  by  a  different 
course,  namely,  by  the  civilization  and  conversion  to  Christianity 
of  the  natives  of  that  country ;  and  this  task  they  offered  ]them- 
selves  to  undertake,  doubting  not  that  their  labors  would  be  crowned 
with  the  same  success  which  had  attended  them  in  Paraguay. 
Their  proposition  was,  as  might  have  been  expected,  coldly  received 
by  the  authorities,  who  could  gain  nothing  by  its  execution.  The 
Jesuits,  however,  not  being  disheartened  by  this  refusal,  perambu- 
lated the  whole  country,  preaching,  and  exhorting  all  to  contribute 
to  the  accomplishment  of  an  enterprise  so  pious  and  so  politic.  By 
such  means,  and  by  the  cooperation  of  their  brethren  in  Europe, 
they  raised  a  small  fund ;  and  finally,  in  1697,  they  procured  royal 
warrants,  authorizing  them  to  enter  upon  the  reduction  of  CaUfornia 
for  the  king,  and  to  do  all  that  might  tend  to  that  object  at  their 
own  expense.  On  receiving  these  warrants.  Father  Salvatierra,  the 
chief  missionary,  immediately  sailed,  with  a  few  laborers  and  sol- 
diers, to  the  land  which  was  to  be  the  scene  of  their  operations. 
There  he  was  soon  after  joined  by  Fathers  Kuhn,  (a  German, 
called,  by  the  Spaniards,  IRno,)  Piccolo,  Ugarte,  and  others,  all 
men  of  courage  and  education,  and  enthusiastically  devoted  to  the 
cause  in  which  they  were  engaged ;  and,  in  November,  1697,  the 
first  establishment,  called  Loreto,  was  founded  on  the  eastern  side 
of  the  peninsula,  about  two  hundred  miles  from  the  Pacific. 

The  Jesuits,  on  entering  California,  had  to  encounter  the  same 
perils  and  obstacles  which  had  rendered  ineffectual  all  the  other 
attempts  to  occupy  that  country.  They  were  attacked  by  the 
natives,  to  whose  ferocity  several  of  the  fathers  fell  victims ;  the 
land  was  so  barren,  that  it  scarcely  yielded  the  means  of  sustaining 
life  to  the  most  industrious  agriculturist,  for  which  reason  the  set- 
tlements were  all  located  near  the  sea,  in  order  that  the  necessary 
food  might  be  procured  by  fishing ;  and.  the  persons  employed  in 
their  service,  being  drawn  from  the  most  miserable  classes  in 
Mexico,  were  always  indolent  and  insubordinate,  and  generally 
preferred  loitering  on  the  shore,  in  search  of  pearls,  to  engaging  in 
the  regular  labors  required  for  the  support  of  settlers  in  a  new 
region.  The  operations  of  the  Jesuits  were  also,  for  some  time, 
confined  within  tlie  narrowest  limits,  from  want  of  funds.    Their 


100 


JESUITS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


[1702. 


iiii 


lilll  11 


f:!:'i   M 


hi  .  ' ''ii 


brethren  and  friends  occasionally  made  remittances  to  them,  in 
money  or  goods ;  and  the  king  was  persuaded  to  assign,  for  their 
use,  a  small  annual  allowance :  but  the  Mexican  treasury,  which 
was  charged  with  the  payment  of  this  allowance,  was  seldom  able 
to  meet  their  drafts  when  presented ;  and  the  assistance  derived 
from  all  these  sources  was  much  diminished  in  value  before  it 
reached  those  for  whom  it  was  destined.     Embarrassments  of  this 
nature  occurred  in  1702,  at  the  commencement  of  the  undertaking, 
in  consequence  of  the  great  costs  of  the  expeditions  from  Mexico 
for  the  occupation  of  Texas,  and  the  establishment  of  garrisons  at 
Pensacola  and  other  places  in  Florida,  as  checks  upon  the  French. 
By  perseverance  and  kindness,  however,  rather  than   by  any 
other  means,  the  Jesuits  ovel-came  all  the  difficulties  to  which  they 
were  exposed ;  and  within  sixty  years  after  their  entrance  into  Cal- 
iforntfl,  they  had  formed  sixteen  principal  establishments,  called 
missions,  extending  in  a  chain  along  the  eastern  side  of  the  penin- 
sula from  Cape  San  Lucas  to  the  head  of  the  gulf.     Each  of  these 
missions  comprised  a  church,  a  fort  garrisoned  by  a  few  soldiers, 
and  some  stores  and  dwelling-houses,  all  under  the  entire  control  of 
the  resident  Jesuit ;  hnd  it  formed  the  centre  of  a  district  containing 
several  ranchenas,  or  villages  of  converted  Indians.    The  principal 
mission  or  capital  was  Loreto ;  south  of  it  was  La  Paz,  the  port 
of  communication  with  Mexico,  probably  the  same  place  called 
Santa  Cruz  by  Cortes,  where  he  endeavored  to  plant  a  colony  in 
1535 ;  and  near  Cape  San  Lucas  was  San  Jose,  at  which  an  attempt 
was  made  to  provide  means  for  the  repair  and  refreshment  of  vessels 
employed  in  the  Philippine  trade.    No  establishments  were  formed 
on  the  west  coast,  which  does  not  seem  to  have  been  visited  by  the 
Jesuits,  except  on  one  occasion,  in  1716.     The  villages  were  each 
under  the  superintendence  of  Indians  selected  for  the  purpose,  of 
whom  one  possessed  the  powers  of  a  governor,  another  took  care 
of  the  church  or  chapel,  and  a  third  summoned  the  inhabitants  to 
prayers  and  reported  the  delinquents.     The  children  were  taught 
to  speak,  read,  write,  and  sing,  in  Spanish,  and  were  initiated  into 
the  doctrines  and  ceremonies  of  the  Roman  Catholic  religion.    The 
converts  were  directed  in  their  labors  by  the  fathers ;  each  being 
generally  allowed  to  retain  the  fruits  of  his  industry,  though  he 
was  at  the  same  time  made  to  understand  that  he  could  not  claim 
them  as  his  property.     Immigration  from  other  countries,  except  of 
Jesuits,  was  as  far  as  possible  prevented ;  the  efforts  of  the  mission- 
aries being,  in  California  as  in  Paraguay,  devoted  exclusively  to  the 


1760.] 


JESUITS   IN   CALIFORNIA. 


101 


improvement  of  the  natives,  and  their  union  into  a  species  of  com- 
monwealth, under  the  guidance  of  their  preceptors. 

The  Jesuits  also  in  California,  as  in  Paraguay  and  elsewhere, 
exerted  themselves  assiduously  in  acquiring  a  knowledge  of  the 
geography,  natural  history,  and  languages  of  the  country.  They 
surveyed  the  whole  coast  of  the  Californian  Qulf,  determining  with 
exactness  the  relative  positions  of  the  principal  points  on  it ;  and  in 
1709,  Father  Kuhn  ascertained  beyond  doubt  the  fact  of  the  con- 
nection of  the  peninsula  with  the  continent,  which  had  been  denied 
for  a  century.  Indeed,  as  regards  the  eastern  and  middle  parts  of 
the  peninsula,  nearly  all  the  information  which  we  possess  at  the 
present  day  has  been  derived  through  the  labors  of  these  mission* 
aries.  On  all  those  subjects,  the  results  of  their  researches  were 
communicrled  to  the  world  through  the  Lettres  edifiantes  et  curi- 
eurei,  published,  from  time  to  time,  at  Paris,  by  learned  members  of 
their  order,  and  afterwards  more  fully  in  their  History  of  California,"" 
which  appeared  at  Madrid  in  1757,  and  has  been  translated  into  all 
the  languages  of  Western  Europe. 

In  the  mean  time, —  that  is  to  say,  ever  since  the  beginning  of  the 
seventeenth  century, — the  power  of  Spain  had,  from  a  variety  of 
causes,  been  constantly  declining.  Her  resources,  and  those  of  her 
colonies,  had,  within  that  period,  been  materially  reduced ;  in  mari- 
time force  she  had  fallen  far  below  England  and  France,  and  a 
large  portion  of  America,  including  valuable  and  extensive  terri- 
tories, which  had  been  long  occupied  by  her  subjects,  had  passed 
into  the  hands  of  her  rivals  or  enemies.  Her  government,  indeed, 
resisted,  as  long  as  possible,  these  intrusions  and  encroachments,  as 
they  were  considered,  of  other  nations  upon  territories  of  which 
Spain  claimed  exclusive  pos^jssion  in  virtue  of  the  papal  grant  of 
1493,  as  well  as  of  prior  discovery ;  and  never,  until  forced  by 
absolute  necessity,  did  the  court  of  Madrid  recognize  the  claim  of 
any  other  power,  except  Portugal,  to  occupy  countries  in  the  New 
World,  or  to  navigate  the  Western  Atlantic,  or  any  part  of  the 
Pacific.     The  earliest  recognition  of  such  a  right  by  Spain  was 


*  JVbtteta  de  CaUfomia  y  de  su  Conquista  espiritual  y  temptyral. — This  work,  though 
usually  attributed  to  Venegos,  is  doubtless  chiefly  due  to  the  labors  of  Father  Andres 
Marcos  Burriel.  The  portions  relating  to  the  proceedings  of  the  Jesuits  in  California 
are  highly  interesting,  and  bear  every  mternal  mark  of  truth  and  authenticity.  The 
observations  on  the  policy  of  the  Spanish  government  towards  its  American  posses- 
sions are  replete  with  wisdom,  and  indicate  more  liberality,  as  well  as  boldness,  on 
the  part  of  the  authors,  than  could  have  been  reasonably  expected,  considering  the 
circumstances  under  which  they  were  written  and  published. 


102 


DECLINE    OF   THE    SPANISH    POWER. 


[1763. 


.!'i..i,      i 


\  ■  :■:  I 


made  in  the  American  treaty,  as  it  was  called,  concluded  with  Great 
Britain  in  1670,  by  which  it  was  agreed  that  tlie  British  king  should 
have  and  enjoy  forever,  with  plenary  right  of  sovereignty  and 
property,  all  lands,  regions,  islands,  and  colonies,  possessed  by  him 
or  his  subjects  in  the  West  Indies,  or  in  any  part  of  America ;  with 
the  understanding,  however,  that  the  subjects  of  neither  power 
should  trade  with,  or  sail  to,  any  place  in  those  countries  belonging 
to  the  other,  unless  forced  thither  by  stress  of  weather  or  pursuit 
by  enemies  or  pirates.  Those  stipulations  were  renewed  and  con- 
firmed by  the  treaty  of  Utrecht,  in  1713,  in  which  the  queen  of 
England,  moreover,  engaged  to  give  assistance  to  the  Spaniards  for 
the  restoration  of  the  ancient  limits  of  their  dominions  in  the  West 
Indies,  as  they  were  in  the  time  of  King  Charles  II.  of  Spain ; 
and  it  was  by  common  consent  established,  as  a  chief  and  funda- 
mental rule,  that  the  exercise  of  navigation  and  commerce  in  the 
Spanish  West  Indies  should  remain  as  it  was  in  the  time  of  that 
king,  who  died  in  1700. 

The  terms  of  these,  and  all  other  treaties  on  the  same  subject, 
between  Great  Britain  and  Spain,  were,  however,  so  vague,  that 
they  served  rather  to  increase  than  to  prevent  disputes.  The 
meaning  of  the  expression  Spanish  West  Indies  never  could  be 
fixed  to  the  satisfaction  of  both  the  parties ;  and  it  was  impossible 
for  them,  in  any  case  of  alleged  trespass  by  either  upon  the  rights 
of  the  other,  to  agree  as  to  what  were  the  limits  of  their  respective 
dominions,  or  what  was  the  state  of  their  navigation  and  commerce 
at  the  time  of  the  death  of  King  Charles  IL,  or  at  any  other  time. 
The  British  colonies  were,  nevertheless,  constantly  advancing  and 
absorbing  those  of  other  European  powers,  and  all  the  attempts  of 
the  Spaniards  to  check  their  prosperity  were  ineffectual. 

The  French,  by  their  occupation  of  Louisiana  and  the  western 
half  of  St.  Domingo,  also  gave  great  uneasiness  to  the  Spaniards 
for  some  time ;  but  the  political  interests  of  the  two  nations  had 
become  so  closely  involved,  by  the  family  ties  between  their  sove- 
reigns, that  Spain,  as  the  weaker,  in  this  and  in  the  other  cases, 
was  obliged  to  submit  to  the  influence  and  encroachments  of  her 
powerful  ally. 

At  length,  in  1763,  peace  was  restored  among  these  three  great 
powers.  Spain  recovered  from  France  New  Orleans  and  the  part 
of  Louisiana  west  of  the  Mississippi;  while  the  remainder  of 
Louisiana,  together  with  Florida,  Canada,  and  all  the  other  French 
possessions  on  the  North  American  continent,  became  the  property 


1762.] 


rAMILT   COMPACT. 


108 


of  Great  Britain.  The  interests  of  France  in  the  New  World  were 
so  small,  after  these  arrangements,  that  they  could  scarcely  of  t'  ^i- 
sclves  afford  grounds  for  dispute  between  her  and  Spain ;  ano  ..le 
two  Cleans  were,  moreover,  supposed  to  be  firmly  united  by  a 
treaty  celebrated  in  history  as  the  Family  Compact,  concluded  in 
1762,  through  the  agency,  chiefly,  of  the  duke  de  Choiseul,  prime 
minister  of  France,  by  which  the  sovereigns  of  those  kingdoms 
guarantied  to  each  other  all  their  dominions  in  every  part  of  the 
world,  and  engaged  to  consider  as  their  common  enemy  any  nation 
which  should  become  the  enemy  of  either. 

The  claims  of  Spain  to  the  sovereignty  of  the  western  side  of 
America  were  never  made  the  subject  of  controversy  with  any 
other  state  until  1790 ;  but  her  pretensions  to  the  exclusive  navi- 
gation of  the  Pacific,  though  upheld  by  her  government  even  after 
that  period,  had  long  before  ceased  to  be  regarded  with  respect  by 
the  rest  of  the  world.  The  free-traders,  freebooters,  and  bucaniers, — 
that  is  to  say,  the  smugglers  and  pirates, — of  Great  Britain,  France, 
and  Holland,  led  the  way  into  that  ocean,  which  they  continued 
to  infest  during  the  whole  of  the  seventeenth  and  a  part  of  the 
eighteenth  centuries :  they  were  followed  by  the  armed  squadrons 
of  those  nations,  with  one  or  other  of  which  Spain  was  almost 
always  at  war ;  and  during  the  intervals  of  peace  came  the  exploring 
ships  of  the  same  powers,  whose  voyages,  though  at  first  ostensibly 
scientific,  were,  with  good  reason,  considered  at  Madrid  as  ominous 
of  evil  to  the  dominion  of  Spain  in  America.* 

These  exploring  voyages  became  more  frequent,  and  their  objects 
were  avowedly  political  as  well  as  scientific,  after  the  peace  of 
1763  ;  about  which  time,  moreover,  they  were  rendered  more  safe, 
expeditious,  and  eflfective  in  every  respect,  by  the  introduction  of 
the  reflecting  quadrant  and  the  chronometer  into  use  on  board  the 
public  ships  of  all  the  maritime  nations  of  Europe,  except  Spain 
and  Portugal.  Between  that  year  and  1779  the  Pacific  and  the 
southern  oceans  were  annaally  swept  by  well-appointed  ships  of 
Great  Britain  or  France,  under  able  navigators,  whose  journals  were 
published  immediately  on  the  concldsion  of  their  voyages,  in  the 

*  Lord  Lansdowne,  in  a  speech  in  the  British  House  of  Lords,  December  13, 1790, 
on  tbe  subject  of  the  convention  then  recently  concluded  with  Spain,  said  — "  Sir 
Benjamin  Keene,  [ambassador  from  Great  Britain  at  Madrid  from  1754  to  1757,]  one 
of  the  ablest  foreign  ministers  this  country  ever  had,  used  to  say,  that,  if  the  Span- 
iards vexed  us  in  the  first  instance,  we  had  means  enough  to  vex  them  in  return, 
without  infringing  treaties;  and  the  first  step  he  would  recommend  would  be  to 
send  out  shipi  of  discovery  to  the  South  Sea." 


104 


ALARMS  OF  THE  COURT  Or  MADRID 


[1765. 


,  I 


i  mi 


most  authentic  manner  possible,  illustrated  by  maps,  plans,  tables, 
views  of  scenery,  and  portraits  of  natives,  all  conspiring  to  afford 
the  most  exact  ideas  of  the  objects  and  places  described  in  the 
narratives.  New  lands  and  new  objects  and  channels  of  com- 
mercial and  political  enterprise  were  thus  opened  to  all ;  and  new 
principles  of  national  right,  adverse  to  the  subsistence  of  the 
exclusive  system  so  long  maintained  by  the  Spanish  government, 
were  established  and  recognized  among  all  other  states. 

The  voyages  of  the  British  exploring  ships  were,  until  1778,  con- 
fined to  the  southern  parts  of  the  ocean ;  but  the  Spanish  govern- 
ment had  been  constantly  in  dread  of  their  appearance  in  the  North 
Pacific,  particularly  as  a  navigable  communication  between  that 
ocean  and  the  Atlantic,  in  the  north,  was  again  generally  believed 
to  exist.  The  acquisition  of  Canada  by  Great  Britain  rendered 
the  discovery  of  such  a  passage  much  more  important  to  that 
power,  as  there  was  less  danger  that  any  other. nation  should 
derive  advantages  from  it,  to  the  injury  of  British  inierests ;  while 
Spain,  becoming  possessed  of  Louisiana,  which  was  supposed  to 
extend  indefinitely  northward,  had  thus  additional  reasons  for 
viewing  with  dissatisfaction  any  attempts  of  her  rival  to  advance 
westward  across  the  continent. 

Serious  grounds  of  apprehension  were  also  afforded  by  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  Russians  on  the  northernmost  coasts  of  the  Pacific. 
All  that  was  generally  known  of  them  vas  obtained  from  the  maps 
and  accounts  of  the  French  geographers,  which,  though  vague  and 
contradictory,  yet  served  to  establish  the  certainty  that  this  am- 
bitious and  enterprising  nation  had  formed  colonies  and  naval 
stations  in  the  north-easternmost  part  of  Asia,  and  had  found  and 
taken  possession  of  extensive  territories  beyond  the  sea  bathing 
those  shores ;  and  these  circumstances  were  sufficient  to  alarm  the 
Spanish  government  for  the  safety  of  its  provinces  on  the  western 
side  of  America. 

In  order  to  avert  the  evils  thus  supposed  to  be  impending,  and 
at  the  same  time  to  revive  the  claims  of  Spain  to  ihe  exclusive 
navigation  of  the  Pacific,  and  to  the  possession  of  the  vacant  terri- 
tories of  America  adjoining  her  settled  provinces,  as  well  as  to 
render  those  provinces  more  advantageous  to  and  dependent  on 
the  mother  country,  a  system  was  devised  at  Madrid,  about  the 
year  1765,  embracing  a  series  of  measures  which  were  to  be  applied 
as  circumstances  might  dictate  or  permit.  This  system,  which  is 
supposed  to  have  been  elaborated  chiefly  by  Carrasco,  the  fiscal  of 


1766.] 


SOHCMEB    or   TRS    COURT   OF    SPAIN. 


106 


the  Council  of  Castile,  and  Galvez,  a  high  officer  of  the  Council  of 
the  Indies,  embraced  reforms  in  every  part  of  the  administration, 
particularly  in  the  finances  of  the  American  dominions,  the  shameful 
abuses  in  which  had  been  laid  open  by  Ulloa,  in  his  celebrated 
report*  presented  to  the  government  in  1747.  It  was  likewise 
intended  that  the  vacant  coasts  and  islands,  adjacent  to  the  settled 
provinces  in  the  New  World,  should  be  examined  and  occupied  by 
colonies  and  garrisons  sufficient  for  their  protection  against  the 
attempts  of  foreign  nations  to  seize  them,  or  at  least  to  secure- 
to  Spain  the  semblance  of  a  right  of  sovereignty  over  them,  on 
the  ground  of  prior  discovery  and  settlement.  The  deliberations 
with  regard  to  this  system  seem  to  have  been  conducted  with  the 
utmost  secrecy  by  the  Spanish  government ;  and  no  idea  was  enter- 
tained of  its  objects  in  1766,  when  Galvez,  the  officer  above  named, 
arrived  in  Mexico  as  visUad6r,-f  with  full  powers  to  carry  the  new 
measures  into  effect  in  that  part  of  the  dominions. 

This  Galvez  was  a  man  of  the  most  violent  and  tyrannical  dis- 
position. His  arbitrary  proceedings  in  financial  matters  occasioned 
an  insurrection  in  the  province  of  Puebla,  which  nothing  but  the 
firmness  and  good  sense  of  the  marquis  de  Croix,  then  viceroy  of 
Mexico,  prevented  from  becoming  general.  He  then  engaged  in  an 
expensive  war  against  the  Indians  in  Sonora  and  Sinaloa,  the  coun- 
tries bordering  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  Californian  Gulf,  from 
which  very  little  either  of  honor  or  of  profit  accrued  to  Spain ;  and 
a  portion  of  his  impetuosity  having  thus  escaped,  he  turned  his 
attention  towards  California,  where  he  was  charged  with  an  im- 
portant duty. 

The  sovereigns  of  continental  Europe  and  their  ministers  had* 
long  been  impatient  and  jealous  of  the  influence  enjoyed,  or  sup- 

*  Notkias  secretas  de  America  —  Secret  information  respecting  the  internal  adminis- 
tration of  Peru,  Quito,  Chile,  and  New  Granada,  collected  by  Don  Antonio  de  Ulloa 
and  Don  Jorg6  Juan,  who  had  been  sent  for  that  purpose  by  the  Spanish  govern- 
ment in  1740 ;  the  only  work  from  which  it  is  possible  to  obtain  a  true  picture  of  the 
state  of  those  countries,  and  of  the  abuses  and  corruptions  practised  in  them  by  the 
Spanish  officials.  It  was  first  published  at  London,  in  1826,  by  some  political  refugees 
of  that  nation,  who  had  obtained  possession  of  the  original  manuscript. 

t  "  This  title  is  given  to  persons  charged  by  the  court  of  Madrid  to  make  inquiries 
as  to  the  state  of  the  colonies.  Their  visits,  in  general,  produce  no  other  effects  than 
to  balance  for  a  time  the  authorities  of  the  viceroy  and  the  audioncia,  [powers  almost 
always  at  variance,]  and  to  cause  an  infinite  number  of  memorials,  petitions,  and 
plans,  to  be  devised  and  presented,  and  some  new  tax  to  be  imposed.  The  people  of 
the  country  look  for  the  arrival  of  a  visitaddr  with  the  same  impatience  with  which 
they  afterwards  desire  his  departure."  —  Humboldt's  Essay  on  Mexico,  book  ii. 
chapter  vii. 

14 


100 


T»   EXPULIION   or  THE   JltOTTt. 


[1767 


m 


.^■J 


I 


po«ed  to  be  enjojed,  by  the  Jeiuiti ;  and  the  goTernroeiitt  of  Spain 
and  Portugal,  though  alwayi  oppowd  to  each  other,  were  equally 
miatniitful  ai  to  the  objects  l•^d  proceedingi  of  that  order  in  the 
New  World.  Suspicions  were  entertained  at  Lisbon  and  at  Madrid 
that  those  proceedings  were  not  dictated  solely  by  religious  or  phil- 
anthropic motives;  but  that  the  Jesuits  aspired  to  the  separation 
and  exclusive  control  of  the  greater  part,  if  not  of  the  whole,  of 
Southern  America:  and  these  suspicions  were  increased  by  the 
successful  stand  which  they  made  in  Paraguay,  at  the  head  of  the 
natives,  against  the  division  of  that  province,  and  the  transfer  of  a 
portion  of  its  territory  to  Portugal,  agreeably  to  the  treaty  concluded 
between  the  latter  kingdom  and  Spain,  in  1750.  This  act  drew 
down  upon  the  order  the  hatred  of  the  subtle  and  fearless  marquis 
de  Pombal,  who  then  ruled  Portugal  with  a  rod  of  steel ;  from  that 
moment  he  devoted  himself  to  its  destruction,  and,  his  plans  having 
been  disposed  with  care  and  secrecy,  all  its  members  were  expelled 
from  the  Portuguese  dominions,  without  difficulty,  in  1759.  In 
France,  the  Jesuits  were  soon  after  entirely  overthrown  by  the 
agency  of  the  duke  de  Choiseul,  the  minister,  and  madame  de  Pom- 
padour, the  mistress  of  Louis  XV. ;  and  on  the  2d  of  April,  1767, 
a  decree  was  unexpectedly  issued  by  King  Charles  IIL  of  Spain, 
at  the  instigation  of  the  celebrated  count  de  Aranda,  for  their  im- 
mediate banishment  from  the  Spanish  territories.  This  decree  was 
executed  without  delay  in  every  part  of  the  empire.  In  Mexico, 
the  Jesuits,  to  the  number  of  several  hundreds,  were,  in  July 
following,  arrested  and  sent  off  to  Europe ;  and  a  strong  military 
force  was  at  the  same  time  despatched  to  California,  under  the 
command  of  Don  Gaspar  do  Portola,  who  found  no  difficulty  in 
tearing  a  few  old  priests  from  the  arms  of  their  wailing  converts. 

Thus  ended  the  rule  of  the  Jesuits  in  California.  That  their 
efforts  were  attended  with  good  cannot  be  denied ;  for  those  who 
were  the  immediate  objects  of  their  care,  were  certainly  rendered 
happier,  more  comfortable,  and  more  free  from  vice,  than  they  would 
otherwise  have  been.  Unfortunately,  however,  the  aborigines  of 
California  are  among  the  most  indolent  and  brutish  of  the  human 
race ;  with  minds  as  sterile  and  unimprovable  as  the  soil  of  their 
peninsula.  By  constant  watchfulness,  by  the  judicious  administra- 
tion of  rewards  as  well  as  punishments,  by  the  removal  of  all  evil 
examples,  and,  above  all,  by  studiously  practising  themselves  what 
they  recommended  to  others,  the  benevolent,  wise,  and  persevering 
Jesuits  did  indeed  introduce  a  certain  degree  of  civilization,  or 


•  s?. 


1767.] 


BXP0L8I0N   OV  THE   JltUITI. 


107 


apparent  civiKxation,  tmong  thete  people ;  but  there  ii  no  reason 
to  believe  that,  by  any  ineana  as  yet  employed  for  the  purpose,  a 
■ingle  Californian  Indian  haa  been  rendered  a  uaeful,  or  even  an 
innocuous,  member  of  society. 

There  was,  however,  no  intention  on  the  part  of  the  Spanish 
government  t(^  abandon  California.  On  the  contrary,  the  peninsula 
imincdiatoly  became  a  province  of  Mexico,  and  was  provided  with 
military  and  civil  officers  dependent  on  the  viceroy  of  that  kingdom ; 
and  the  missions  were  confided  to  the  Dominicans,  under  whose 
austere  rule  the  majority  of  the  converts  relapsed  into  barbarism. 
Establishments  were  also  formed  by  the  Spaniards  on  the  western 
side  of  California ;  and  the  coasts  farther  north,  which  had  been 
neglected  for  more  than  a  hundred  and  sixty  years,  were  explored 
in  voyages  made  for  the  purpose  from  Mexico,  as  will  be  shown  in 
the  succeeding  chapter. 


108 


<i\ 


CHAPTER    IV. 
1769  TO  1779. 


First  Eatablishmenta  on  tho  West  Coast  of  California  founded  by  the  Spaniards  — 
Dispute  between  Spain  and  Great  Britain  respecting  the  Falkland  Islands— 
Exploring  Voyages  of  the  Spaniards  under  Perez,  ilcccta  and  Bodega,  and  Artcaga 
and  Bodega  —  Discovery  of  Nootka  Sound,  Norfolk  Sound,  and  the  Mouth  of  the 
Columbia  River  —  Importance  of  these  Discoveries. 

Immediately  after  the  expulsion  of  the  Jesuits  from  Mexico,  the 
viceroy  of  Mexico,  De  Croix,  and  the  visitaddr,  Galvez,  directed 
their  attention  to  the  establishment  of  colonies  and  garrisons  on  the 
western  side  of  CaHfornia,  agreeably  to  the  system  adopted  for  the 
restauration  of  the  Spanish  dominions  in  the  New  World. 

At  that  time,  little  was  known,  with  certainty,  of  any  part  of  the 
west  coast  of  America  north  of  the  43d  parallel,  to  which  latitude 
it  had  been  explored  by  Sebastian  Vizcaino,  in  1603.  The  voyage 
of  Juan  de  Fuca  was  generally  considered  as  apocryphal,  and 
nothing  of  an  exact  nature  could  be  learned  from  the  accounts  of 
the  Russian  expeditions  in  that  quarter.  Upon  examining  the 
charts  and  journiils  of  Vizcaino,  descriptions  were  found  of  several 
places  surveyed  by  him,  "which  he  strongly  recommended  as  suitable 
for  settlements  or  naval  stations ;  and,  agreeably  to  his  views,  it  was 
determined  in  Mexico  that  the  first  establishments  should  be  formed 
on  the  harbors  which  had  received  from  that  navigator  the  names 
of  Port  San  Diego  and  Port  Monterey.  Accordingly,  after  much 
difficulty,  a  small  number  of  settlers,  with  some  soldiers  and  Fran- 
ciscan friars,  were  assembled  at  La  Paz,  on  the  western  shore  of  the 
Californian  Gulf,  which  had  been  selected  as  the  place  of  rendez- 
vous ;  and  thence,  in  the  spring  of  1769,*  they  began  their  march 

*  This  account  of  the  establishment  of  the  first  Spanish  colonies  on  the  west  coast 
of  California  is  derived  from  —  the  narrative  of  Miguel  Costanso,  the  engineer  of  the 
expedition,  which  was  published  at  Mexico  in  1771,  and  immediately  suppressed  by 
the  government ;  a  copy,  however,  escaped  to  England,  from  which  a  translation  was 
published  at  London,  in  1790,  by  A.  Dalrymple  —  and  from  the  biography  of  Friar 
Junipero  Serra,  the  principal  of  the  Franciscaps  who  accompanied  the  expedition, 
written  by  Friar  Francisco  Falou,  and  published  at  Mexico  in  1787. 


1769.] 


SPANISH    COLONIES    IN    NEW    CALIFORNIA. 


109 


through  the  peninsula  towards  San  Diego,  the  nearest  of  the  places 
selected  for  the  first  establishments,  in  two  parties,  commanded 
respectively  by  Gaspar  de  Portola,  the  governor  of  the  newly-formed 
province,  and  Fernando  de  Rivera,  a  captain  in  the  army.  Each 
party  carried  a  drove  of  cattle ;  the  materials  and  supplies  for  the 
colonies  being  sent  in  three  vessels  directly  to  San  Diego. 

The  first  party  of  emigrants  under  Rivera,  after  a  .long  and 
painful  march,  reached  San  Diego  on  the  14th  of  May,  1769,  and 
found  there  two  of  the  vessels,  which,  after  disastrous  voyages  and 
the  loss  of  many  of  their  crews  by  scurvy,  had  arrived  a  few  days 
previous.  The  other  body,  under  Portola,  marched  by  a  still  more 
difficult  route,  and  did  not  join  their  companions  on  the  Pacific 
shore  until  nearly  two  months  later.  A  spot  having  been  chosen 
for  the  settlement  near  the  entrance  of  the  Bay  of  San  Diego, 
a  portion  of  the  men  were  employed  in  erecting  the  necessary 
buildings ;  with  the  remainder  Portola  set  off  for  Monterey,  where 
he  was  anxious  also  to  establish  a  colony  immediately,  leaving 
directions  that  the  third  vessel,  which  was  expected  from  Mexico, 
should  be  ordered  to  proceed  with  her  cargo  to  that  place.  This 
expedition,  however,  was  not  successful ;  for  the  Spaniards,  march- 
ing along  the  eastern  side  of  the  range  of  mountains  which 
border  the  coast  northward  of  San  Diego,  passed  by  Monterey, 
and  found  themselves,  at  the  end  of  October,  on  the  shore  of  a  great 
bay,  which  they  supposed  to  be  the  same  called  Port  San  Francisco 
in  the  accounts  of  the  old  navigators.  When  they  discovered  the 
place  of  which  they  were  in  search,  the  cold  weather  had  begun ; 
and,  the  vessel  not  appearing,  with  the  supplies,  as  expected,  they 
were  obliged  to  retrace  their  steps  to  San  Diego.  Of  this  third 
vessel  nothing  was  ever  heard  after  her  departure  from  the  Gulf  of 
California. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  people  left  at  San  Diego  had  experienced 
great  difficulties  from  the  hostility  of  the  natives,  by  whom  they 
were  several  times  attacked ;  and,  after  the  return  of  the  governor's 
party,  they  were  all  in  danger  of  perishing  from  want  of  food :  so 
that  they  unanimously  agreed  to  abandon  the  country  and  return 
to  ..lexico,  unless  they  should  be  relieved,  before  St.  Joseph's  day, 
the  10th  of  March,  1770,  by  the  return  of  one  of  the  vessels,  which 
had  been  sent  for  supplies.  On  that  day,  one  of  the  vessels 
did  arrive,  and,  the  supplies  being  found  sufficient,  Portola  again  set 
off  for  Monterey,  where  a  settlement  was  effected.  Puring  the 
same  year,  other  parties  of  emigrants  came  from  Mexico,  and  new 


% 


'4, 


•1 


110 


DISPUTE    ABOUT   THE    FALKLAND    ISLANDS. 


[1770. 


establishments  were  formed  on  the  coast  between  San  Diego  and 
Monterey ;  and,  as  the  means  of  subsistence  soon  became  abundant 
by  the  multiplication  of  their  cattle,  independently  of  the  fruits  of 
their  labor  in  agriculture,  the  Spanish  colonies  in  Upper  California 
were,  before  1775,  in  a  condition  to  resist  the  dangers  to  which  they 
were  Hkely  to  be  exposed. 

Another  measure,  undertaken  by  the  Spanish  government  about 
this  time,  in  prosecution  of  its  plans  for  securing  the  unsettled 
coasts  and  islands  of  America  from  occupation  by  foreign  powers, 
brought  Spain  into  collision,  and  nearly  into  war,  with  Great  Britain. 

Soon  after  the  peace  of  1763,  colonies  were  formed  by  the  French 
and  the  British  on  the  barren,  storm-vexed  group  of  the  Falk- 
land Islands,  in  the  South  Atlantic  Ocean,  near  the  entrance  of 
Magellan's  Strait.  The  French  colonists  were  soon  withdrawn  by 
their  government,  at  the  instance  of  the  Spanish  king,  though  not 
until  after  an  angry  discussion :  the  British  ministers,  on  the  other 
hand,  treated  with  contempt  the  remonstrances  addressed  to  them 
from  Madrid,  on  the  subject  of  their  settlement.  At  length,  in 
June,  1770,  the  British  colonists  were  expelled  from  Port  Egmont, 
the  place  which  they  occupied,  by  a  squadron  and  troops  sent  for  the 
purpose  from  Buenos  Ayres  by  Don  Francisco  Bucareli,  the  gov- 
ernor of  that  province.  This  event  created  great  excitement  in 
England,  and  both  nations  prepared  for  war ;  but  the  dispute  was 
compromised  through  the  mediation  of  France.  A  declaration  was 
presented  on  the  part  of  Spain,  to  the  effect  —  that  the  Catholic  king 
disavowed  the  act  of  the  governor  of  Buenos  Ayres,  and  promised 
to  restore  the  settlers  to  Port  Egmont ;  but  that  these  concessions 
were  not  to  be  considered  as  prejudicing  his  prior  right  of  sovereign- 
ty over  the  inlands :  and  the  British  minister  gave  in  return  an  accept- 
ance of  the  disavowal  and  promise  of  restoration,  without  noticing 
the  Spanish  reservation  of  right.^  Agreeably  to  this  promise,  the 
British  colonists  were  replaced  at  Port  Egmont  in  1771 ;  but  they 
were  withdrawn  by  order  of  their  government  in  1774,  on  the  plea 
of  the  expensiveness  and  inutility  of  the  establishment,  but,  as  is 


*  The  documents  relative  to  this  dispute  may  be  found  at  length  m  the  London 
Annual  Register,  and  in  the  Grentleman's  Magazine,  for  1770.  See,  also, — the 
Parliamentaj^  History,  vol.  xvi. — the  Anecdotes  of  the  Life  of  Lord  Chatham, 
chap,  xxxix. — Thoughts  on  the  Falkland  Islands,  by  Dr.  Samuel  Johnson,  &c. 
The  author  of  this  History  may  also  be  permitted  to  refer  to — a  Memoir,  Historical 
and  Political,  on  the  Falkland  Islands — written  by  himself,  and  published  in  the  New 
York  Merchant's  Magazine  for  February,  1843,  containing  full  accounts  of  all  the 
circumstances  connected  with  this  famous  dispute.  ,.   , 


1771.] 


SETTLEM    NT    OF   THE    DISPUTE. 


Ill 


generally  believed,  in  consequence  of  a  secret  engagement  to  that 
effect,  concluded  between  the  parties*  at  the  time  of  the  settlement 

*  The  existence  of  such  an  engagement  was  first  insinuated  by  Junius,  in  his  letter 
of  January  3Uth,  1771,  and  was  soon  after  directly  cliarged,  in  parliament,  by  eminent 
members,  without  reply  from  the  ministers.  Johnson  made  no  attempt  to  deny  it  in 
his  Thoughts,  &c.,  but,  on  the  contrary,  in  an  edition  published  after  the  evacuation 
by  the  British,  he  admits  that  the  "  island  was,  perhaps,  kept  only  to  quiet  clamors, 
with  an  intention,  not  then  wholly  concealed,  of  quitting  it  in  a  short  time."  That 
the  British  ministers  did  engage  to  evacuate  Port  Egmont,  soon  after  it  should  have 
been  restored,  is  positively  asserted  in  the  Anecdotes  of  the  Life  of  Lord  Chatham, 
in  the  Histoire  de  la  Diplomatic  Francaise,  by  Flassan,  and  in  the  Histories  of  Eng- 
land, by  Bisset,  Belsham,  Hughes,  and  Wade ;  while  Coote  and  Adolphus  both  admit 
that  an  assurance  to  the  same  effect  was  made  to  Spain  prior  to  the  settlement  of  the 
dispute.  The  Pictorial  History  of  England,  published  in  1841,  states  the  belief  as  to 
the  existence  of  the  secret  engagement,  leaving  the  question  as  to  its  truth  undeter- 
mined. In  fine,  it  was  regarded  as  an  established  fact,  that,  at  the  time  of  the  conclu- 
sion of  the  dispute,  an  engagement  or  promise  was  made  by  the  British  government  to 
that  of  Spain,  to  withdraw  all  British  subjects  from  the  FalkhnuL  Islands  within  a  short 
time  after  Port  Egmont  should  have  been  restored  to  Great  Britain;  and  this  fiict  re- 
mained unquestioned  until  the  8th  of  January,  1834,  when  Lord  Palmerston,  the 
British  secretary  for  foreign  affairs,  in  answer  to  a  protest  on  the  part  of  the  gov- 
ernment of  Buenos  Ayres  against  the  recent  occupation  of  the  Falkland  Islands  by 
Great  Britain,  formally  denied  it,  and  produced  a  number  of  extracts  from  eorre- 
spondence  between  British  ministers  and  their  own  agents,  which  he  considered  as 
affording  "  conclusive  evidence  that  no  such  secret  understanding  could  have  existed," 
as  it  is  not  mentioned  in  those  extracts.  The  papers  cited  by  Lord  Palmerston,  and 
the  arguments  which  he  draws  from  them,  are,  however,  insuflScient  to  change  the 
general  belief  vb  the  subject;  for  in  none  of  them  should  we  expect  to  find  any  allu- 
sion to  the  engagement  in  question.  There  is  no  apparent  reason  that  the  ministers 
should  have  informed  any  of  the  persons  addressed  in  these  letters  of  their  promise 
to  evacuate  the  islands ;  while,  on  the  other  hand,  it  was  clearly  important  for  them 
to  suppress  all  proof  of  their  having  made  such  an  engagement,  which  the  whole 
British  people  would  have  considered  dishonoring.  It  is  no  novelty  in  diplomacy, 
that  an  ambassador  should  be  kept  in  ignorance  of  matters  settled  or  discussed  be- 
tween his  own  ministers  of  state  and  those  of  the  government  to  which  he  is  accred- 
ited; and  the  very  negotiation  by  which  this  dispute  was  terminated,  was  carried  on 
through  the  agency  of  the  secretary  of  the  French  embassy  at  London,  while  the 
ambassador  himself  knew  nothing  about  it. 

Equally  inefficient  to  produce  conviction  is  the  assertion  of  Lord  Palmerston  in 
the  same  letter,  "that  the  reservation  (with  regard  to  the  sovereignty  of  the  Falkland 
Islands)  contained  in  the  Spanish  declaration  cannot  be  admitted  to  possess  any  sub- 
stantial weight,  inasmuch  as  no  notice  whatever  is  taken  of  it  in  the  British  counter- 
dtclaration."  In  the  first  place,  no  counter-declaration  was  made  on  the  occasion: 
the  British  minister  presented,  in  return  for  the  Spanish  ambassador's  declaration,  a 
paper  containing  not  a  word  of  contradiction,  and  which  is,  as  it  was  styled  when 
submitted  to  parliament,  an  acceptance.  These  two  documents — the  only  ones  which 
are  as  yet  known  to  have  passed  on  the  conclusion  of  the ,  dispute  —  cannot  be  sepa- 
rated in  reasoning  on  their  contents,  but  must  be  taken  tMi^iher,  as  forming  or«  con- 
vention, admitted  by  both  parties  ;  for  it  will  not  be  preteuMf  that  the  Spanish  ambaa- 
sador  delivered  his  declaration,  without  full  knowledge  en  the  answer  which  was  to 
be  made  to  it.  The  silence  of  the  British  minister  on  the  subject  of  the  reservation 
amounts,  at  least,  to  an  acknowledgment  that  the  fact  of  the  restitution  of  Port  Egmont 
was  not  regarded  as  a  surrender  by  Spain  of  her  daim  of  toreretgnty  over  the  Uamds, 


1'  ^-j 


112 


SPANISH    COLONIES    IN   NEW    CALIFORNIA. 


[1774. 


of  the  dispute.  Bucareli,  the  governor  of  Buenos  Ayres,  whose  acts 
had  been  disavowed  by  his  sovereign,  was  raised  to  the  high  and 
lucrative  post  of  viceroy  of  Mexico. 

The  issue  of  this  dispute  between  Great  Britain  and  Spain,  served 
to  impress  upon  the  government  of  the  latter  power  still  more 
strongly,  the  conviction  of  the  necessity  of  occupying  the  vacant 
coasts  and  islands  of  America  adjoining  its  settled  provinces. 
Efforts  for  this  purpose  were  accordingly  made,  not  only  on  the 
coasts  of  California,  but  also  on  those  of  Texas,  of  the  Mosquito 
country,  and  of  Patagonia,  and  were  continued,  at  great  expense, 
though  with  little  effect,  until  1779,  when  they  were  abandoned,  in 
consequence  of  the  wars  excited  by  the  revolution  which  ended  in 
the  independence  of  the  United  States. 

The  efforts  of  the  Spanish  government  were,  however,  specially 
directed  towards  the  west  coasts  of  North  America ;  and,  in  order 
to  give  them  efficiency,  a  particular  branch  of  the  administration  of 
Mexico  was  created,  under  the  title  of  the  Marine  Department  of 
San  Bias,  which  was  charged  with  the  superintendence  and  ad- 
vancement of  the  establishments  in  that  quarter.  The  port  of  San 
Bias,  in  Mexico,  at  the  entrance  of  the  Californian  Gulf,  was  made 
the  centre  of  the  operations  for  these  purposes:  arsenals,  ship- 
yards, and  warehouses,  were  erected  there ;  all  expeditions  for  the 
coasts  farther  north  were  made  from  it,  and  all  orders  relative  to 
them  passed  through  the  chief  of  the  department,  who  resided  at 
that  port. 

In  this  manner,  before  1779,  eight  establishments  were  formed, 
by  the  Spaniards,  on  the  Pacific  coast  of  America,  between  the 
Californian  peninsula  and  Cape  Mendocino ;  the  southernmost  of 
which  was,  San  Diego,  near  the  32d  degree  of  latitude,  and  the 
northernmost,  San  Francisco,  on  the  great  bay  of  the  same  name, 
near  the  38th.  These  establishments  were,  in  their  character, 
almost  exclusively  military  and  missionary ;  being  intended  solely 
for  the  occupation  of  the  country,  which  it  was  proposed  to  effect, 
as  far  as  possible,  by  the  conversion  of  the  aborigines  to  the 
Catholic  religion,  and  to  the  forms  and  customs  of  civilized  life. 

The  military  arrangements  were  all  on  the  most  miserable  scale. 
The  forts,  some  of  them  dignified  with  the  name  of  castles,  were 
of  mud;  the  artillery  were  a  few  old  pieces,  of  various  sizes, 
generally  ineffective,  and  the  garrisons  were  all  slender :  the  men 
were  badly  armed,  badly  clothed,  and  seldom  or  never  exercised, 
though  they  were  well  fed,  as  the  country  was  covered  with  cattle. 


1774.] 


SPANISH   COLONIES   IN   NEW   CALIFORNIA. 


118 


the  descendants  of  the  herds  brought  thither  by  the  Spaniards  in 
1770;  and  the  ground  yielded,  with  little  cultivation,  as  much 
Indian  corn,  beans,  and  red  pepper,  as  could  be  consumed.  The 
missions  were,  for  the  most  part,  in  the  vicinity  of  the  military 
stations,  and,  like  those  of  the  Jesuits,  they  each  contained  a  church, 
generally  well  built,  with  some  ruder  edifices,  for  the  accommoda- 
tion of  the  priests  and  their  converts,  and  for  store  and  wkvk- 
houses.  The  public  farms  were  worked  by  the  natives,  under  the 
direction  of  the  missionaries  or  soldiers,  and  merely  produced  the 
food  required  in  the  establishments,  and,  in  some  places,  a  little 
wine.  Towns  were  afterwards  formed,  some  of  which  were 
endowed  with  the  privileges  of  a  corporation ;  but  n<Hie  of  them 
attained  a  large  size. 

The  missionaries  were,  as  already  stated,  of  the  Franciscan 
order,  the  members  of  which  are  incapacitated,  by  their  vows,  from 
holding  any  property  as  individuals.  They  were,  for  the  most  part, 
plain,  uneducated  men — taken  from  the  lower  classes  of  society,  and 
knowing  no  books  but  their  breviaries,  and  the  bi(^raphies  of  their 
saints — who  devoted  themselves  conscientiously  and  heroically  to 
the  task  of  reclaiming  and  guiding  the  barbarous  natives  of  that 
remote  region  —  without  any  expectation  of  acquiring  wealth  or 
honors  —  unsupported  by  the  ambition  and  pride  of  order  which 
animated  the  Jesuits  —  and  uncheered  by  those  social  pleasures  and 
consolations  which  our  Protestant  apostles  derive  from  their  fam- 
ilies, wherever  they  may  be  placed.  To  their  virtuous  conduct  and 
self-denial  all  the  enlightened  travellers*  who  have  visited  their 
missions  bear  unqualified  testimony. 

These  missionaries  soon  succeeded  in  reducing  a  large  numt^er 
of  the  natives  of  California  to  a  certain  degree  of  conformity  with 
the  customs  of  social  life.  The  neophytes  were  obtained,  gener- 
ally when  young,  (torn  their  parents,  by  persuasion,  or  by  purchase, 
or,  in  some  cases,  by  for^e,  and  were  never  sufTered  to  return  to 
their  savage  friends,  if  it  could  be  prevented.  They  were  all,  at 
first,  treated  as  children ;  the  nature  and  hours  of  their  labors,  their 
studies,  their  meals,  and  their  recreations,  being  prescribed  by  their 
superintendents;  and  they  were  punished  when  negligent  or  re- 
fractory, though  not  with  severity.  After  remaining  ten  years  in 
this  state  of  pupilage,  they  might  obtiin  their  liberty,  and  have 
ground  allotted  to  them ;  but  comparatively  few  availed  themselves 


\  I; 


v 


*  La  FerouM,  Vaaeonver,  Kotie)ni«,  B««eli«]r,  Ao. 
15 


CH   ,       Sj 


i   .'f^  ^         "! 


114 


VOYAGE    or   JUAN   PEREZ. 


[1774. 


of  the  permission,  and  those  who  did  so,  for  the  most  part,  sunk  into 
sloth  and  misery,  or  returned  to  the  wilds,  and  resumed  the  savage 
life.  In  the  latter  cases,  the  Spaniards  employed  every  means  in 
their  power  to  retake  the  fugitives,  who  were,  indeed,  often  sent 
back  by  the  barbarians,  as  unworthy  of  enjoying  the  privileges  of 
freemen. 

The  Franciscans  did  not,  like  the  Jesuits,  exert  themselves  in 
procuring  information  respecting  the  countries  in  which  they 
resided;  and  nothing  has  been  learnt  from  them  of  the  geogra- 
phy or  natural  history  of  the  part  of  California  which  they  occupied. 
In- 1775,  Friars  Font  and  Garzes  travelled,  by  land,  from  Mexico, 
through  Sonora,  and  the  country  of  the  Colorado  River,  to  the 
mission  of  San  Gabriel,  in  California,  making  observations  on  their 
way,  with  the  view  to  the  increase  of  intercourse  between  Mexico 
and  the  establishments  in  the  latter  region.  They  were,  hov/ever, 
coldly  received  by  their  brethren,  who  informed  them  that  the/  had 
no  desire  to  have  such  communications  opened ;  and  their  jouvnal 
was  never  made  public.  In  the  same  year.  Friars  Dominguez  and 
Escalante,  of  the  same  order,  attempted  to  penetrate  westward 
from  Santa  F^,  in  NeW  Mexico,  to  the  Pacific ;  but,  after  proceed- 
ing about  half  the  distance,  they  turned  back.  The  journals  of 
both  these  expeditions  are  still  preserved,  in  manuscript,  in  Mexico, 
where  they  have  been  consulted  by  Humboldt  and  other  travellers ; 
but  they  ard,  from  all  accounts,  of  no  value. 

Between  1774  and  1779;  three  exploring  voyages  were  made, 
by  order  of  the  Spanish  government,  in  which  the  west  coasts  of 
America  were  examined,  as  far  north  as  the  60th  degree  of  latitude. 

The  first  of  these  voyages  was  conducted  by  Ensign  Juan  Perez, 
who  had  been  long  employed  in  the  Manilla  trade,  and  afterwards 
in  the  vessels  sailing  between  San  Bias  and  the  new  establishments 
on  the  Californian  coast.  He  was  accompanied  by  Sstevan  Marti- 
nez, as  pilot,  and  Friars  Pena  and  Crespi,  as  chaplains,  from  whose 
journals,  as  well  as  from  those  of  the  commander,  the  following 
account  of  the  voyage  is  derived.* 

Perez  sailed  from  San  Bias  in  the  corvette  Santiago,  on  the  25th 


*  The  authoritieB  for  the  account  of  this  expedition  are — the  Narrative  composed  by 
Perez  for  the  viceroy — the  Journal  of  Friar  Tomas  dq  la  Pena — and  the  Observationi 
of  the  pilot  Martinez — manuscript  copies  of  which  have  been  procured  firom  Madrid. 
The  Journal  of  Friar  Crespi  was  examined  by  Humboldt,  who  has  given  some  par- 
ticulars derived  from  it  in  his  Essay  on  Mexico.  Of  this  voyage  no  account  was  ever 
given  to  the  world  until  1802,  when  a  short  notice  of  H  appeared  in  the  Introduction 
to  the  Journal  of  the  Suti}  and  Mexicana. 


1774.] 


VOYAGE   or  JUAN   PEREZ. 


116 


of  January,  1774,  with  orders,  from  the  viceroy  of  Mexico,  to 
proceed,  as  soon  as  possible,  northward,  to  the  60th  degree  of 
latitude,  and  then  to  survey  the  coasts  of  America  from  that  paral- 
lel, southward,  to  Monterey,  taking  possession,  for  the  king,  of 
every  place  at  which  he  might  land.  From  San  Bias  he  went  first 
to  San  Diego,  and  thence  to  Monteiey,  from  which  latter  place  he 
took  his  departure,  on  the  16th  of  June,  for  the  north.  The 
weather,  as  usual  in  that  part  of  the  Pacific,  proved  stormy,  the 
winds  blowing  almost  constantly  from  the  north-west ;  so  that  it  was 
not  until  the  18th  of  July  that  the  Santiago  reached  the  54th  par- 
allel of  latitude,  under  which  land  was  first  seen  in  the  east.  The 
coast  thus  observed  was  high  and  rocky,  extending  southward  as  far 
as  the  eye  could  penetrate,  and  terminating,  in  the  north,  in  a  pcont, 
to  which  Perez  gave  the  name  of  Cape  Santa  Margarita.  In  the 
interior  was  seen  a  lofty,  snow-covered  range  of  mountains,  which 
he  called  the  Sierra  de  San  Crisioval.  On  approaching  the  shore, 
the  Spaniards  could  find  no  place  where  it  would  be  safe  to  anchor ; 
and,  on  rounding  the  cape,  the  coast  beyond  it  was  found  to  stretch 
directly  westward.  By  this  time,  the  crew  were  beginning  to  show 
symptoms  of  scurvy,  the  weather  was  tempestuous,  and  the  vessel 
was  small,  and  badly  provided  in  every  respect ;  under  which  cir- 
cumstances, it  was  determined  that  no  attempt  should  be  made  to 
go  farther  north.  The  Spaniards  accordingly  steered  southward, 
along  the  coast,  for  about  a  hundred  miles,  and  were  then  driven 
otT  by  a  storm :  before  leaving  it,  however,  they  met  some  of  the 
natives,  in  their  canoes,  with  whom  they  traded,  receiving  sea-otter 
and  other  valuable  skins  in  return  for  old  clothes,  knives,  shells, 
and  other  trifles. 

The  land  thus  discovered  was  the  west  side  of  the  large  island 
afterwards  named  Queen  Charlotte^s  Island  by  the  British;  Cape 
Santa  Margarita  being  the  north-easternmost  point,  now  called,  on 
English  maps.  Cape  North,  at  the  entrance  of  Dixon's  ChanneL 
Many  particulars  respecting  the  people  of  these  coasts  are  recorded 
in  the  journals  of  the  Spaniards,  which  agree  precisely  with  the 
accounts  of  subsequent  navigators. 

On  the  9th  of  Ajgust,  Pciez  again  made  the  land,  and  discov- 
ered, under  the  parallel  of  49  degrees  30  minutes,  a  deep  bay,  at 
the  entrance  of  which  he  anchored,  between  two  high  points,  one 
bearing  six  leagues  north-west,  the  other  two  leagues  south-east. 
Ere  long,  his  vessel  was  surrounded  by  canoes,  filled  with  natives  of 
the  country,  who  readily  engaged  in  trade  with  his  crew :  they  are 


I'' 


116 


TorAoc  or  juan  perbc. 


{1774. 


\m 


«^ 


ii- 


reprefented,  in  the  journal  of  Friar  Peiia,  ai  having  lighter  complex- 
ioni  than  other  aborigines  of  America;  like  those  farther  north, 
they  were  clad  in  skins,  their  hats  being,  however,  made  of  rushes, 
curiously  plaited  and  painted,  of  a  conical  shape,  with  a  knob  on  the 
top.  To  the  surprise  of  the  Spaniards,  they  had  many  knives, 
arrow-points,  and  other  articles,  of  iron  and  copper,  though  it  did 
not  appear  that  they  had  held  any  intercourse  with  civilized  people. 
To  this  bay  Perez  gave  the  name  of  Port  San  Lorenzo,  in  honor 
of  the  saint  on  whose  day  it  was  first  seen ;  it  is  undoubtedly  the 
same  which,  four  years  afterwards,  received,  from  Captain  Cook, 
the  appellation  of  King  George^s  or  NootJea  Sound.  The  point 
north-west  of  its  entrance,  called,  by  the  Spaniards,  Cape  Santa 
Clara,  is  the  Woody  Point  of  the  English;  and  the  other  point — 
the  Cape  San  Ettevan  of  Perez — corresponds  precisely,  in  situa- 
tion and  all  other  particulars,  as  described,  with  the  Point  Breakers 
of  the  English  navigator. 

From  Port  San  Lorenzo,  the  Spaniards  sailed  along  the  coast 
southward ;  and,  in  the  latitude  of  47  degrees  47  minutes,  they 
beheld,  at  a  distance  in  the  interior,  on  the  east,  a  lofty  mountain, 
covered  with  snow,  which  they  named  Sierra  de  Santa  Rosalia  — 
I»obably  the  Mount  Olympus  of  the  English  maps.  Martinez,  the 
pilot  of  the  Santiago,  many  years  after,  thought  proper  to  remem- 
ber that  he  had  also  observed,  between  the  48th  and  the  49th 
parallels,  a  wide  opening  in  the  land,  and  that  he  had  given  his  own 
name  to  the  point  on  the  south  side  of  its  entrance.  Of  this 
observation  no  note  appears  in  the  journals  of  the  voyage ;  yet, 
upon  the  strength  of  the  tardy  recollection  of  the  pilot,  his  country- 
men have  claimed  for  him  the  merit  of  rediscovering  the  Strait  of 
Juan  de  Fuca,  and  have  affixed  the  name  of  Cape  Martinez,  in 
their  charts,  to  the  point  of  the  continent  where  that  passage  joins 
the  Pacific.  Continuing  his  voyage  to  the  south,  Perez,  en  the  2ht 
of  August,  passed  in  sight  of  Cape  Mendocino,  the  true  latitude  of 
which  he  first  determined ;  and,  on  the  27th,  he  arrived  at  Mon- 
terey, whence  he,  after  some  time,  went  on  to  San  Bias. 

In  this  voyage,  the  first  made  by  the  Spaniards  along  the  north- 
west coasts  of  America  after  1603,  very  little  was  learned,  except 
that  there  was  land,  on  the  eastern  side  of  the  Pacific,  as  far  north 
as  the  latitude  of  54  degiees.  The  government  of  Spain,  perhaps, 
acted  wisely  in  concealing  the  accounts  of  the  expedition,  which 
reflected  iittle  honor  on  the  courage  or  the  science  of  its  navigators; 
but  it  haa  thereby  deprived  itself  (tf  the  means  of  e»tabUshing 


1775.] 


VOTAOC  or  HEOETA  AND  BODBOA. 


117 


beyond  question  the  claim  of  Peres  to  the  discovery  of  the  important 
harbor  called  Nootka  Sound,  which  is  now,  by  genera!  consent, 
assigned  to  Captain  Cook,  '  \ 

Immediately  after  the  returr  'of  Perez  to  Mexico,  the  viceroy 
Bucareli  (the  same  officer  w!.o,  as  governor  of  Buenos  Ayres,  had 
expelled  the  British  from  the  Falkland  Islands  in  1770)  ordered  that 
another  expedition  should  be  made  for  the  purpose  of  examining 
those  coasts  as  far  as  the  65th  degree  of  latitude,  to  which  they 
were  believed  to  extend  continuously  north-westward.  With  this 
object  the  Santiago  was  placed  under  the  command  of  Captain 
Bruno  Heceta,  under  whom  Perez  was  to  go  as  ensign ;  and  she 
was  to  be  accompanied  by  a  small  schooner,  called  the  Sonora,  of  ' 
which  Juan  de  Ayala  was  to  have  the  command,  and  Antonio 
Maurelk/  to  be  pilot.  These  two  vessels,  having  been  equipped, 
and  provided  with  the  History  of  California  by  Venegas,  and  a  chart 
of  the  whole  north-west  coast  of  America,  constructed  according  to 
the  fancy  of  the  French  geographer  Bellin,  in  1166,""  sailed  together 
from  San  Bias,  on  the  15th  of  March,  1775;  in  company  with  the 
schooner  San  Carlos,  bound  for  Monterey,  f  Ere  they  had  lost  sight 
of  the  land,  however,  the  captain  of  the  San  Carlos  became  deUrious, 
in  consequence  of  which  Ayala  was  ordered  to  take  his  place,  the 
command  of  the  Sonora  being  transferred  to  Lieutenant  Juan  Fran- 
cisco de  la  Bodega  y  Quadra.  These  circumstances  are  mentioned, 
because,  in  nearly  all  the  abstracts  of  the  accounts  of  this  voyage 
hitherto  published,  Ayala  appears  as  the  chief  of  the  expedition ; 
whereas,  in  fact,  he  only  accompanied  the  exploring  vessels  to  a 
short  distance  from  San  Bias. 

*  Carte  r6(}uite  de  I'Ocean  f&ptentrional,  compris  entre  TAsie  et  TAm^rique, 
suivant  les  D6couverte8  faites  par  les  Rusaes.    Par  N.  Bellin.    Paris,  1766. 

t  Of  this  expedition  no  less  than  five  separate  accounts  are  found  among  the 
manuscripts  obtained  from  Madrid,  viz. :  the  official  narrative  of  the  whole,  drawn 
up  for  the  viceroy  of  Mexico  —  the  Journal  of  Bodega — part  of  the  Journal  of 
Heceta,  showing  his  course  after  his  parting  with  Bodega — a  concise  narrative  by 
Bodega — and,  lastly,  the  Journal  of  Maurelle,  the  pilot  of  the  Sonora.  A  copy  of 
Maurelle's  Journal  was  obtaineu  in  Madrid,  soon  after  the  conclusion  of  the  voyage, 
from  which  an  English  translation  was  published  at  London,  in  1781,  by  the  Hon. 
Daines  Barrington,  among  his  Mitcellanus.  This  translation,  though  very  inaccurate 
and  incomplete,  attracted  much  attention  at  th.?  time  of  its  appearance,  and  from  it, 
and  the  short  account  given  ih  the  Introduction  to  the  Journal  of  Galiano  and 
Valdes,  all  the  information  respecting  the  voyage  has  been  hitherto  obtained.  Bar- 
rington's  Miscellanies  is,  however,  a  rare  book ;  and  the  notices  of  this  expedition 
contained  in  the  various  memoirs,  reports,  correspondence,  &c.,  relative  to  the  north- 
west coast,  are,  for  the  most  part,  taken  directly,  or  at  second  hand,  from  the  abstracts 
of  the  Journal,  given  by  Fleurieu  in  his  instructions  to  La  Perouse,  and  his  Intro- 
duction to  the  Joonml  of  Marohond,  which  are  both  filled  with  errors. 


i 

^ 


If 
1 


vi. 


$m 


118 


▼OTAOB   or    HEOETA    AND   BODIOA. 


[1776. 


The  exploring  vessels,  after  parting  with  the  San  Carlos,  doubled 
Cape  Mendocino,  and,  on  the  10th  of  June,  anchored  in  a  small 
roadstead  beyond  that  promontory,  in  the  latitude  of  41  degrees 
10  minutes.  The  officers,  priests,  and  a  portion  of  the  men,  imme- 
diately landed,  and  took  possession  of  the  country,  in  the  name 
of  their  sovereign,  with  religious  solemnities,  bestowing  upon  the 
harbor  the  name  of  Port  Trinidad;  and  they  then  engaged  in 
repairing  their  vessels  and  obtaining  a  supply  of  water,  which 
afforded  them  employment  for  nine  days. 

During  this  period,  the  Spaniards  held  frequent  communications 
with  the  people  of  the  country,  who  dwelt  principally  on  the  banks 
of  a  small  stream,  named  by  the  navigators  Rio  de  la»  Tortolas,  — 
Pigeon  River,  —  from  the  multitude  of  those  birds  in  its  vicinity. 
The  Indians  conducted  themselves  uniformly  in  the  most  peace- 
able manner,  and  appeared  to  be,  on  the  whole,  an  inoffensive  and 
industrious  race.  They  were  clothed,  for  the  most  part,  in  skins, 
and  armed  with  bows  and  arrows,  in  the  use  of  which  they  were 
very  expert;  their  arrows  were,  in  general,  tipped  with  copper 
or  iron,  of  which  metals  they  had  knives  and  other  implements  — 
whence  procured  the  Spaniards  could  not  learn.  No  signs  of 
religious  feelings,  or  ceremonies  of  any  kind,  could  be  discovered 
among  them,  unless  their  howling  over  the  bodies  of  the  dead  may 
be  considered  in  that  light. 

Having  completed  their  arrangements,  Heceta  and  Bodega  sailed 
from  Port  Trinidad  on  the  19th  of  June,  leaving  a  cross  erected 
near  the  shore,  with  an  inscription,  setting  forth  the  fact  of  their 
having  visited  the  place  and  taken  possession  of  it  for  their  sove- 
reign :  this  monument  the  Indians  promised  to  respect ;  and  they 
kept  their  word,  for  Vancouver  found  it  there  untouched  in  1793. 
The  Spaniards  considered  the  discovery  of  the  place  important :  the 
harbor  being,  according  to  their  journals,  safe  and  spacious,  and 
presenting  facilities  for  communication  between  vessels  and  the 
shore ;  and  the  surrounding  country  fruitful  and  agreeable.  Van- 
couver, however,  gives  a  much  less  favorable  view  of  the  harbor, 
which  he  pronounces  to  be  in  no  respect  a  secure  retreat  for 
vessels,  as  it  is  entirely  open  to  the  soufh-west  winds,  which  bbw 
on  that  coast  with  the  utmost  violence  at  certain  seasons  of  the 
year.  The  other  accounts  of  the  Spaniards,  respecting  tht  place 
and  its  inhabitants,  are,  in  general,  confirmed  by  those  of  the  British 
navigator. 

The  Spaniards,  after  leaving  Port  Trinidad,  were  obliged  to  keep 


1775.] 


VOTAOC   or    HCOCTA   AND  BODCOA. 


119 


at  a  distance  from  the  coait  for  three  weeks,  at  the  end  of  which 
time  they  again  came  in  sight  of  it,  in  the  latitude  of  49  degrees 
27  minutes.  From  that  parallel  they  examined  the  shore  towards 
the  south,  in  search  of  the  strait  said  to  have  been  discovered  by 
Juan  de  Fuca  in  1592,  the  entrance  of  which  was  placed,  in  Bellin's 
chart,  between  the  47th  and  the  48th  degrees  of  latitude ;  and,  having 
satisfied  themselves  that  no  such  opening  existed  there,  the  two 
vessels  cast  anchor  near  the  land,  though  at  some  distance  from 
each  other,  in  order  to  obtain  water  and  to  trade  with  the  natives. 

Here  a  severe  misfortune  befell  the  schooner  on  the  14th  of  July. 
Seven  of  her  men,  who  had  been  sent  ashore  in  her  only  boat, 
though  well  armed,  were  attacked  and  murdered,  immediately  on 
landing,  by  the  natives;  and  the  schooner  was  herself  in  much 
danger  of  being  taken  by  those  savages,  who  surrounded  her,  during 
the  whole  day,  in  great  numbers,  in  their  canoes,  and  were  with 
difficulty  prevented  from  boarding  her.  In  commemoration  of  this 
melancholy  event,  the  place  at  which  it  occurred  was  called  Punta 
de  Martires  —  Martyr's  Point ;  it  is  in  the  latitude  of  47  degrees 
20  minutes,  and  on  English  maps  is  called  Grenvilk's  Point.  A 
small  island,  situated  a  few  miles  farther  north,  the  only  one  de- 
serving th-'.t  name  between  Cape  Mendocino  and  the  Strait  of  Fuca, 
was  also  named  Ida  de  Dolores  —  Isk  of  Sorrows :  twelve  years 
afterwards,  this  same  isle  received,  from  the  captain  of  the  ship 
Imperial  Eagle,  of  Ostend,  the  appellation  of  Destruction  Island, 
in  consequence  of  a  similar  massacre  of  some  of  his  crew  by  the 
Indians,  on  the  main  land  opposite. 

This  disaster,  together  with  the  wretched  condition  of  the 
schooner,  and  the  appearance  of  scurvy  in  the  crews  of  both  ves- 
sels, occasioned  a  debate  among  the  officers,  as  to  the  propriety  of 
continuing  the  voyage.  The  commander,  Heceta,  was  desirous  to 
return  to  Monterey,  in  which,  however,  he  was  opposed  by  his  own 
pilot,  Juan  Perez,  and  by  Bodega,  the  captain,  and  Maurelle,  the 
pilot,  of  the  schooner ;  and,  their  opinions  having  been  given,  as 
usual  in  the  Spanish  service,  in  writing,  the  unwilling  assent  of  the 
commander  was  obtained,  and  the  voyage  towards  the  north  was 
resumed  on  the  20th  of  July.  Ere  they  had  proceeded  for  in  that 
direction,  the  vessels  were  separated  in  a  storm ;  whereupon  Heceta 
seized  the  opportunity  to  go  back  to  Monterey,  whilst  Bodega  per- 
severed in  his  determination  to  accomplish,  as  far  as  possible,  the 
objects  of  the  expedition. 

Heceta,  after  parting  with  the  schooner,  made  the  land  near  the 


Ml 


^ 


^    :^ 


M 


190 


HEOBTA   OI800TEM    A   OMAT   MTKlt. 


[1776. 


60th  degree  of  latitude,  (on  the  >outh-weit  side  of  the  great  island 
of  Vancouver  and  Quadra,)  and,  paning  by  the  Port  San  Lorenzo, 
(Nootka  Sound,)  discovered  in  the  previous  year  by  Perez,  he  came 
on  the  coast  of  the  continent  near  the  48th  parallel,  without  observ- 
ing the  intermediate  entrance  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  for  which  he, 
however,  sought  between  the  47th  and  48th  parallels.  Thence  he 
ran  along  the  shore  towards  the  south,  and,  on  the  16th  of  August, 
arrived  opposite  an  opening,  in  the  latitude  of  46  degrees  17  min- 
utes, from  which  rushed  a  current  so  strong  as  to  prevent  his  enter- 
ing  it.  This  circumstance  convinced  him  that  it  was  the  mouth  of 
some  great  river,  or,  perhaps,  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  which  might 
have  been  erroneously  placed  on  his  chart:  he,  in  consequence, 
remained  in  its  vicinity  another  day,  in  the  hope  of  ascertaining 
the  true  character  of  the  place ;  but,  being  still  unable  to  enter  the 
opening,  he  continued  his  voyage  towards  the  south:*| 

On  the  opening  in  the  coast  thus  discovered  Heceta  bestowed 
the  name  of  Eruefiada  de  Asuncion  f  —  Assumption  Met ;  calling  the 
point  on  its  north  side  Cayt  San  Roque,  and  that  on  the  south  Cape 
Frondoso  —  Leafy  Cape.  In  the  charts  published  at  Mexico,  soon 
after  the  conclusion  of  the  voyage,  the  entrance  is,  however,  called 
Enseiiada  de  Heceta  —  Heceta* s  Inlet  —  and  Rio  de  San  Rogue  — 
River  of  St.  Roc.  It  was,  undoubtedly,  the  mouth  of  the  greatest 
river  on  the  western  side  of  America ;  the  same  which  was,  in  1792, 
first  entered  by  the  ship  Columbia,  from  Boston,  under  the  command 
of  Robert  Gray,  and  has  ever  since  been  called  the  Cohmhia. 
The  evidence  of  its  first  discovery  by  Heceta,  on  the  16th  of  August, 
1775,  is  unquestionable. 

From  Assumption  Inlet,  Heceta  continued  his  course,  along  the 
shore  of  the  continent,  towards  the  south,  and  arrived  at  Monterey, 
with  nearly  two  thirds  of  his  men  sick,  on  the  30th  of  August.  In 
his  journal,  he  particularly  describes  many  places  on  this  part  of  the 
coast  which  are  now  well  known ;  aach  as — the  remarkable  promon- 
tory, in  the  latitude  of  45^  degre«>s,  with  small,  rocky  islets  in  front, 
named  by  hin  Cape  Falcon,  the  Cape  Lookout  of  our  maps— the 
flat-topped  moantein,  overhanging  the  ocean,  a  little  farther  south, 
noted,  in  his  journal,  as  La  Mesa,  or  TKe  Table,  which,  in  1805, 


*  Se«  extract  from  the  JoutimI  of  Heceta,  among  the  Proofs  and  Illtutrationi, 
under  tbe  letter  E,  in  the  latter  ^rt  of  thii  volume. 

t  The  15th  of  August  is  th<-  ^ay  of  the  Assumption,  and  the  16th  ii  the  day  of  St 
Roque,  or  Roc,  and  St.  Jaeinto,  or  fiyaointh,  according  to  the  Roman  Catholic 
calendar. 


island 
>rei)ZO, 
3  came 
abserv- 
lich  he, 
snce  he 
August, 
n  min- 
8  enter* 
outh  of 
h  might 
squence, 
;rtaining 
mter  the 

jcBtowed 
tiling  the 
uth  Cape 
ilco,  Boon 
er,  called 
Roque  — 
)  greatest 
,  in  1792, 
command 
\Cohmlna. 
ff  August, 

Btlong  the 
[onterey, 
jgust.  In 
irt  of  the 
ipromon- 
in  front, 
&ps— the 
|ier  south, 
in  1805, 

[Unitntioni, 

i  day  of  St 
Ian  Catholie 


1775.] 


VOTAGC    or    BODCOA    AND    MAURELLK. 


191 


received,  from  Lewis  and  Clarke,  the  name  of  Clarke's  Point  of 
Vierv  —  and  the  numerous  rocky  points  and  reefs  bordering  the 
slioru,  between  tlioso  places  and  Capo  Mendocino. 

Meanwhile,  Bodega  and   Maurelle,  in   their   little  vessel,  were 
striving,  if  possible,  to  reach  the  65th  degree  of  latitude,  agreeably 
to  the  instructions  of  the  viceroy.     With  this  object,  after  their 
separation  from  Heceta,  they  advanced  towards  the  north,  without 
seeing  land,  until  they  had  passed  the  56th  degree  of  latitude,  when 
they  unexpectedly  beheld  it,  on  the  16th  of  August,  at  a  great  dis- 
tance in  the  north,  and  nmch   nearer  on   the   east ;   though,  by 
Bcilin's  chart,  and  their  own  calculations,  they  should  have  been 
one  hundred  and  thirty-five  leagues  from   ony  part   of  America. 
Steering  towards  the  east,  they  discovered  a  lofty  mountain,  rising 
from  the  ocean  in  the  form  of  a  beautiful  cone,  and  covered  with 
snow,  occupying  tho  whole   of  what  seemed  to  be   a   peninsula, 
projecting  from  the  main  land  of  an  extensive  and  elevated  ter- 
ritory :  this  mountain  immediately  received  the  name  of  San  Jacinto, 
in  honor  of  St.  Hyacinth,  on  whose  day  it  was  discovered,  the  pro- 
jecting point  of  land  which  it  occupied  being  called  Cape  Engaflo, 
or  False  Cape.     In  the  angles  between  this  supposed  peninsula  and 
tlie  main  land  were  two  bays,  or  sounds,  of  which  the  northernmost 
was  named  Port  Remedios,  and  the  other  Port  Guadelupe,  after 
the  two  celebrated  shrines  in  the  vicinity  of  the  city  of  Mexico. 
There  is  no  difficulty  in  identifying  any  of  these  places,  as  described 
in  the  journals  of  the  Spanish  voyage.     They  are  situated  on  the 
west  side   of  the   lara^Mt   islaud  of  the  group   distinguished,  on 
English  maps,  as   Kttig   George  IlVa  Archipelago:    Mount  San 
Jacinto    was,   time    \ear8    afterwards,   named    by   Cook    Mount 
Edgecumb;   Port    Remiedios   is   the  Bay  of  Islands  of  the  same 
navigotor,    and    Port   Guadelupe    is   the    Norfolk    Sound  of  th« 
English  geographers.     The  two  bays  have  since  been  found  to  com- 
municate with  each  other  by  a  narrow  passage,  which  •"ompletely 
separates  the  main  land  from  the  mountain.     The  Spaniards  landed 
on  the  shore  of  Port  Remedios,  where  they  took  possession  of  the 
country  agreeably  to  the  formalities  prescribed,  ai  d  obtained  some 
water  and  salmon  for  the  supply  of  their  vessel.     While  thus  en- 
gaged, they  were  surrounded  by  a  crowd  of  natives  of  the  country, 
who  appeared  to  be  more  savage  and  determined  than  those  of  any 
other  part  of  the  coast,  and  also  to  entertain  very  distinct  ideas 
of  then-  own  superior  rights  of  property  and  domain.    Thus  the 
Spaniards  were  obliged  to  pay,  not  only  for  the  fish,  but  also  for 
16 


n 


i 


f-"l 


122 


THE    SPANIARDS    ON   THEIR   RETURN. 


[1775. 


I,    t! 


the  water  taken  away  by  them ;  and  the  cross,  and  other  marks 
which  they  planted  on  the  shore,  were  torn  up  immediately  on  their 
departure,  and  treated  with  every  indignity  by  the  savages. 

The  voyage  was  resumed  on  the  20th  of  August,  and  was  con- 
tinued along  the  coast,  to  the  58th  degree  of  latitude,  beyond  which 
it  was  found  impossible  to  proceed,  as  nearly  all  on  board  were,  from 
fatigue  and  sickness,  incapable  of  performing  duty,  whilst  the  winds 
were  daily  increasing  in  violence,  and  rendering  greater  exertions 
necessary.  They  accordingly,  on  the  22d,  turned  towards  the  south : 
and,  having  passed  Mount  San  Jacinto,  they  approached  the  coast, 
in  order  to  seek  for  the  Rio  de  Reyes,  the  great  river  through  which 
Admiral  Font6  was  said  to  have  penetrated  far  into  the  interior 
of  the  American  continent,  in  1640.  "  With  this  intent,"  writes 
Maurelle,  in  his  journal,  "  we  examined  every  bay  and  recess  of  the 
coast,  and  sailed  around  every  head-land,  lying  to,  during  the  night, 
in  order  that  we  might  not  miss  this  entrance ;  after  which  exer- 
tions, we  may  safely  pronounce  that  no  such  passage  is  to  be 
found."  This  conclusion  was  certainly  correct,  bu't  it  was  as 
certainly  not  established  by  the  exertions  of  the  Spaniards  on  this 
occasion :  for,  in  the  first  place,  they  confined  their  search  to  the 
part  of  the  coast  north  of  the  54th  parallel,  whereas,  in  the 
account  of  Fonte's  voyage,  the  Rio  de  Reyes  is  made  to  enter  the 
Pacific  under  the  53d ;  and,  had  their  observations  been  as  minute 
as  Maurelle  represents  them,  several  passages  would  have  been 
found,  leading  from  the  ocean  towards  the  north  and  east,  for  the 
complete  examination  of  any  one  of  which,  more  time  would  have 
been  required  than  was  spent  by  the  Spaniards  in  their  whole 
search.  Of  the  many  openings  in  that  part  of  the  coast,  the  only 
one  penetrated  by  these  navigators  was  the  extensive  bay,  named, 
by  them.  Port  Bucareli,  in  the  latitude  of  55^  degrees,  on  the 
west  side  of  the  largest  island  of  the  group  called,  on  English 
maps,  the  Prince  of  Wales's  Archipelago,  where  they  landed,  and 
took  possession,  on  the  24th  of  August.  Thence  proceeding  south- 
ward, they  made  the  north-east  extremity  of  Queen  Charlotte's 
Island,  which  had  received,  from  Perez,  in  the  preceding  year,  the 
name  of  Cape  Santa  Margarita ;  and  they  observed,  immediately 
north  of  that  point,  the  wide  passage  which  they  called  Entrada  de 
Perez  —  the  Dixon* s  Entrance  of  the  English  maps,  separating 
Queen  Charlotte's  from  the  Prince  of  Wales's  Islands. 

From  Cape  Santa  Margarita,  the  Spaniards  sailed  slowly  towards 
the  south,  frequently  seeing  the  land,  though  always  at  too  great  a 


1775. 


[ms. 

marks 
»n  their 

as  con- 
i  which 
re,  from 
[6  winds 
ixertions 
e  south  •; 
le  coast, 
;h  which 
interior 
,"  writes 
ss  of  the 
he  night, 
ich  exer- 
is  to  be 
t  was  as 
s  on  this 
ch  to  the 
s,   in  the 
enter  the 
as  minute 
tave  been 
Lst,  for  the 
ould  have 
leir  whole 
,  the  only 
ly,  named, 


1775.] 


RETORN   OF   BODEGA. 


123 


distance  to  be  able  to  make  any  useful  observation^!,  except  as  to  the 
general  direction  of  the  shores,  until  the  19th  of  September,  when 
they  found  themselves  opposite  the  spot,  near  the  47th  degree  of 
latitude,  where  their  men  had  been  murdered  by  the  natives  two 
months  before.  Leaving  that  place,  they  next  came  on  the  coast 
in  the  latitude  of  45  degrees  27  minutes,  from  which  parallel  they 
carefully  examined  the  shores  southward,  to  the  42d,  in  search  of 
the  great  river,  said  to  have  been  seen  by  Martin  de  Aguilar,  in 
1603,  as  related  in  the  account  of  Vizcaino's  voyage.  Their  obser- 
vations induced  them  to  conclude  that  no  such  river  entered  the 
Pacific  from  that  part  of  the  continent,  though  they  perceived 
strong  currents  outsetting  from  the  land  in  several  places;  they, 
however,  believed  that  they  recognized  the  Cape  Blanco  of  Aguilar, 
near  which  the  mouth  of  his  river  was  said  to  be  situated,  in  a  high, 
flat-topped  promontory,  with  many  white  cliffs  upon  it,  projecting 
far  into  the  sea,  under  the  parallel  of  42  degrees  and  50  minutes  — 
the  same,  no  doubt,  afterwards  named  Cape  Orford  by  Vancouver. 
Having  completed  this  examination,  they  bore  off  to  sea,  and, 
rounding  Cape  Mendocino,  they,  on  the  3d  of  October,  discovered 
a  bay  a  little  north  of  the  3Sth  degree  of  latitude,  which  they 
entered,  supposing  it  to  be  Port  San  Francisco ;  but  it  proved  to  be 
a  smaller  bay,  not  described  in  any  previous  account,  and  Bodega 
accordingly  bestowed  on  it  his  own  name,  which  it  still  bears. 
Having  made  a  hasty  survey  of  Port  Bodega,  the  Spaniards  sailed 
to  Monterey,  and  thence  to  San  Bias,  where  they  arrived  on  the 
20th  of  November,  after  a  voyage  of  more  than  eight  months. 

In  this  expedition,  the  commander,  Heceta,  certainly  acquired  no 
laurels,  though  he  effected,  at  least,  one  discovery,  from  which  a  nation 
more  enterprising  and  powerful  than  Spain  might  have  derived  im.- 
portant  advantages.  Bodega  and  Maurelle,  however,  nobly  vi  ndicated 
the  character  of  their  countrymen,  by  their  constancy  and  persever- 
ance in  advancing  through  unknow.'^  seas,  at  a  stormy  period  of  the 
year,  in  their  small  and  miserably-equipped  vessel,  with  a  diminished 
crew,  the  greater  part  of  whom  were  laboring  under  that  most  debil- 
itating and  disheartening  of  diseases,  the  scurvy.  Fortunately  for 
their  reputation,  a  copy  of  Maurelle's  journal  escaped  from  its 
prison-house  in  the  archives  of  the  Indies  at  Madrid,  and  was  given 
to  the  world,  in  an  English  version,  before  the  appearance  of  any 
other  authentic  account  of  the  parts  of  the  world  which  they  had 
explored ;  and,  by  this  means,  together  with  the  publication  of  their 
chart  about  the  same  time,  their  claims  as  discoverers  were  estab- 


\  J 


i 


\\ 


Ill::    .f     .e 


h':  I 


1S4 


IMPORTANCE    OT    THESE    DISCOVERIES. 


[1775. 


lished  beyond  all  caTil.  Thus,  without  reference  to  the  voyage  of 
Perez,  it  is  conclusively  proved  that  the  Spaniards,  in  1775,  exam- 
ined with  minuteness  the  whole  western  shore  of  the  American 
continent,  from  Monterey,  near  the  37th  degree  of  latitude,  north- 
ward, to  and  beyond  the  48th  degree,  and  determined  the  general 
direction  of  the  west  coasts  of  the  westernmost  islands,  bordering 
the  continent  between  the  48th  parallel  and  the  58th.  Of  these 
coasts,  the  portion  south  of  the  43d  degree  of  latitude  had  been 
seen  by  Ferrelo,^  in  1543,  and  possibly  by  Drake,  in  1578 ;  Juan  de 
Fuca  had  probably  sailed  along  them  to  the  53d  parallel,  in  1592; 
and  the  Russians,  as  will  be  hereafter  shown,  had  discovered  the  part 
near  the  56th  parallel,  in  1741 :  but  no  definite  information  had  been 
obtained,  respecting  any  point,  on  the  Pacific  side  of  America, 
between  Cape  Mendocino  and  Mount  San  Jacinto,  previous  to  the 
expedition  of  Perez.  The  geographical  positions  of  the  places 
visited  by  the  Spanish  navigators  in  1774  and  1775,  were,  indeed- 
left  very  uncertain  as  regards  their  longitudes,  though  the  latitudes 
have  been  found  nearly  correct ;  yet  the  great  question  as  to  the 
extension  of  North  America  towards  the  west  was  approximately 
answered,  and  useful  hints  were  afforded  for  the  organization  and 
conduct  of  future  voyages. 

The  results  of  this  expedition  were  considered,  by  the  Spanish 
government,  as  highly  important;  a  short  notice  of  them  was 
published  in  the  official  gazette,  at  Madrid,  which  was  copied,  with 
many  additions,  (nearly  all  of  them  erroneous,)  into  the  London 
newspapers ;  *  and  orders  were  sent  to  the  viceroy  of  Mexico,  to 

*  "  Several  Spanish  fVigates  having  been  sent  from  Acapulco  to  make  discoveries, 
and  to  propagate  the  gospel  among  the  Indians,  to  the  north  of  California,  in  the 
month  of  July,  1774,  they  navigated  as  high  up  on  the  coast  as  the  latitude  of  58 
degrees  20  minutes,  six  degrees  above  Cape  Blanco  Having  discovered  several 
good  harbors  and  navigable  rivers  upon  the  west  coast  of  this  great  continent,  they 
established,  in  one  of  the  largest  ports,  a  garrison,  and  called  the  port  the  Presidio 
de  San  Carlos,  and,  besides,  left  a  mission  at  every  port  where  the  inhabitants  were 
to  be  found.  The  Indians  they  here  met  with  are  said  to  be  a  very  docile  sort  of 
people,  agreeable  in  their  countenance,  honest  in  their  traffic,  and  neat  in  their  dress, 
but,  at  the  same  time,  idolaters  to  the  greatest  degree ,  having  never  before  had  any 
intercourse  with  Europeans.  M.  Bucarelli,  the  viceroy  of  New  Spain,  has  received 
his  Catholic  majesty's  thanks  for  these  discoveries,  as  they  were  made  under  his 
direction ;  and  the  several  navy  officers  upon  that  voyage  have  been  preferred.  It  ii 
imagined  that  those  new  discoveries  will  be  very  advantageous,  as  the  coast  abounds 
with  whales,  as  also  a  fish,  equal  to  the  Newfoundland  cod,  known,  in  Spain,  by  the 
name  of  Baccalao." 

The  above  notice  appears  in  the  London  Annual  Register  for  1776,  under  date  of 
June  SiSth,  which  was  a  few  days  before  the  depaxture  of  Captain  Cook  from  England 
for  the  North  Pacific. 


in9.] 


TOTAOE  OF  AKTEAOA  AND  BODEGA. 


1S5 


have  the  discovery  of  the  west  coasts  of  America  completed  with- 
out delay,  under  the  care  of  the  same  officers  who  had  already 
effected  so  much  for  that  object.  With  this  view,  the  viceroy, 
Bucareli,  ordered  a  large  ship  to  be  built  at  San  Blas>  and  another 
was,  at  the  same  time,  constructed  at  Guayaquil,  in  Quito.  In 
these  preparations,  nearly  three  years  were  consumed,  so  that  the 
vessels  were  not  ready  for  the  expedition  until  the  beginning  of 
1779 ;  they  then  quitted  San  Bias,  under  the  command  of  Captain 
Ignacio  Arteaga,  who  sailed  in  the  larger  ship,  the  Ifrincesa,  the 
other,  called  the  Favotita,  being  commanded  by  Bodega,  with  Mau- 
relle  as  second  officer.     Heceta  had  been  transferred  to  new  duties. 

Of  this  voyage  a  short  notice  will  suffice,  as  all  the  places  dis- 
covered in  the  course  of  it  had  been  visited,  and  minutely  examined, 
in  the  preceding  year,  1778,  by  the  English,  under  Captain  James 
Cook.* 

On  the  7th  of  February,  1779,  Arteaga  and  Bodega  sailed  from 
San  Bias  directly  for  Port  Bucareli,  which  they  entered  after  a 
voyage  of  four  months ;  and  there  they  remained  nearly  two  months, 
en^'roA  in  surveying  the  bay,  in  refitting  their  vessels,  and  in 
tra  /ith  the   natives,  of  whom  very  minute  and  interesting 

ac  .  .^  are  given  in  the  journals  of  this  voyage.  From  Port 
Bucareli  they  sailed  northward,  on  the  1st  of  July,  and  in  a  few 
days  saw  the  land  stretching  before  them  from  north-east  to  north- 
west :  on  approaching  it,  they  beheld  rising  from  the  coast  a  great 
mountain,  "  higher  than  Orizaba,"  which  was,  no  doubt.  Mount  St. 
Elias ;  and  they  began  their  search,  west  of  these  places,  for  a  pas- 
sage leading  northwards  into  the  Arctic  Sea,  as  laid  down  in  the 
charts  of  Bellin,  which  they  carried  with  them.  In  the  course  of 
this  search,  they  entered  a  great  bay,  containing  many  islands,  on 
the  western  side  of  the  largest  of  which,  called  by  them  Isla  de  la 
Magdalena,  they  found  a  good  harbor,  where  they  cast  anchor  on 
the  25th,  and  took  possession  of  the  whole  region  for  the  king  of 
Spain.  From  this  harbor,  named  by  the  Spaniards  Port  Santiago, 
parties  were  sent  out  in  boats  to  explore  the  coasts ;  but  the  com- 


>  ^r 


*  The  papers  relative  to  this  voyage,  which  have  been  obtained,  in  manuscript, 
from  the  hydrographical  department  at  Madrid,  are  —  the  official  account  of  the  whole 
expedition  —  and  the  journals  of  Bodega  and  Maurelle  —  accompanied  by  several  tables 
of  the  navigation,  and  vocabularies  of  Indian  languages,  and  the  chart  of  the  coast 
about  Prince  William's  Sound,  which  is  utterly  worthless.  A  translation  of  a  part 
of  Maurelle's  journal  may  be  found  in  the  first  volume  of  the  narrative  of  the  expedi- 
tion of  La  Perouse,  accompanied  by  some  severe,  and  not  altogether  just,  reflections 
on  the  conduct  of  the  Spanish  navigators  in  g<%neral. 


126 


SPAIN   AT   WAR   WITH    QREAT   BRITAIN. 


[1779. 


'It  ■,, .; 


mander,  Artehga,  becoming  anxious  to  return  to  Mexico,  soon  found 
that  the  men  were  beginning  to  suffer  fiora  scurvy,  that  the  pro- 
visions were  failing,  and  that  there  was  no  probability  of  thblr  dis- 
covering any  passage,  through  which  they  might  penetrate  farther 
north ;  and  he,  in  consequence,  resolved  that  both  vessels  should 
immediately  proceed  to  Monterey.  They  accordingly  sailed  from 
^*ort  Santiago  on  the  7th  of  August ;  on  the  15th  of  October 
they  entered  Port  San  Francisco,  and  on  the  21st  of  November 
they  arrived  at  San  Bias,  "  where,"  says  Fleurieu,  with  more  justice 
than  usually  chai a ^.terizes  his  remarks  on  Spanish  vo} ages,  "they 
might  have  passed  the  whole  time  which  they  spent  in  their  expedi- 
tion, without  our  knowledge  in  geography  having  sustained  any  loss 
by  their  inaction."  The  voyage  was,  in  fact,  productive  of  no 
benefit  whatsoever,  nnd  the  Spanish  government  should  have  been 
mortified  at  its  results;  instead  of  which,  however,  the  officers 
engaged  in  it  were  all  promoted,  for  their  good  conduct  and 
exertions. 

Of  the  places  visited  by  Arteaga  and  Bodega,  after  leaving  Port 
Bucareli,  the  great  bay,  called  by  them  Ensenada  de  Regla,  is  now 
generally  known  by  the  name  of  Prince  William's  Sound,  and  their 
Isla  de  la  Magdalena  is  the  Montague's  Island  of  the  English  maps. 
It  is  needless  to  mention  any  other  of  the  many  appellations  given 
by  the  Spaniards  to  capes,  bays,  islands,  and  mountains,  in  that 
part  of  America,  as  they  have  fallen  into  disuse. 

In  1779,  Spain  became  involved  in  war  with  Gre?>t  Britain,  and 
her  flag  did  not  again  appear  on  the  coasts  north  of  Cape  Mendo 
cino  until  1788.  Before  relating  the  events  which  occurred  in  that 
interval,  it  will  be  proper  to  present  an  account  of  the  discoveries 
effected  in  the  North  Pacific,  since  the  commencement  of  the  cen- 
tury, by  the  Russians  occupying  the  north-eastern  extremity  of 
Asia. 


ri'-: 


[1779. 

n  found 
he  pro- 
itir  dis- 

farthe; 
I  should 
ed  from 
October 
ovember 
e  justice 
9,  "they 
r  expedi- 

any  loss 
fe  of  no 
lave  been 
3  officers 
iuct  and 


197 


I  \ 


CHAPTER  V. 
17  U  TO  1779.  ' 

DiMoveriea  of  the  RassiaM  from  Kamtchatka — Voyages  of  Bering  and  Tchtrikof  to 
the  Arctic  Sea  and  to  the  American  Continent — Establishments  of  the  Russian 
Fur  Traders  in  the  Aleutian  Islands  —  Voyages  of  Synd,  Krenitzin,  and  Levashef 
—  First  Voyage  from  Kamtchatka  to  China,  made  by  Polish  Exiles  under  Ben- 
yowsky  —  General  Inaccuracy  of  the  Ideas  of  the  Russians  respecting  the  Geogra- 
phy of  the  northernmost  Coasts  of  the  Pacific,  before  1779. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century,  the  coasts  of  Asia 
on  the  Pacific,  north  of  the  40th  parallel  of  latitude,  were  as  little 
known  as  those  of  America  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  ocean. 

In  1643,  Martin  Geritzin  de  Vries  and  Hendrick  Schaep,  two 
Dutch  navigators,  commanding  the  ships  Kastrikom  and  Breskens, 
explored  the  seas  near  Japan,  as  far  north  as  the  48th  degree  of 
latitude,  and  probably  entered  the  great  gulf,  called  the  Sea  of 
Ochotsk,  between  the  main  land  of  Asia  on  the  west,  and  Kamt- 
chatka and  the  Kurile  chain  of  islands  on  the  east.  It  is  also 
related,  that  Thomas  Peche,  an  English  bucanier,  sailed  along  the 
same  coasts  in  1673,  while  in  search  of  the  Strait  'i  Anian,  the 
entrance  of  which  he  was  said  to  have  found  noi-th  of  Japan, 
though  he  was  unable  to  pass  through  it,  on  account  of  the  violence 
of  the  winds  from  the  north. 

From  such  imperfect  accounts  the  maps  of  that  part  of  the  world 
were  generally  constructed,  before  1750.  In  those  maps,  Jesso,  the 
northernmost  of  the  Japan  Islands,  appep*-  as  part  of  the  Asiatic 
continent,  and  Kamtchatka  and  the  Kurile  Islands  are  represented 
as  one  extensive  territory,  under  the  name  of  the  Company's  Land, 
united  to  America  on  the  east,  and  separated  from  Jesso  on  the 
west,  by  a  narrow  passage  called  the  Strait  of  Vries,  or  the  Strait 
of  Anian. 

In  1711,  the  whole  of  Northern  Asia  had  been  completely  sub- 
jugated by  the  Russians,  to  whom  the  rich  furs  *  abounding  in  those 


*  See  the  article  on  Furs  and  the  Fur  Trade,  among  the  Proofs  and  Illustrations  at 
the  concluding  part  of  this  volume,  under  the  letter  b. 


128 


PLANS    or    PETER  THE    GREAT. 


[1728. 


regions  proved  as  attractive  as  the  gold  and  silver  of  America  were 
to  the  Spaniards.  In  the  course  of  tneir  expeditions,  the  Russians 
had  traced  the  northern  «hores  of  Asia,  to  a  considerable  distance 
eastward  from  Europe,  and  they  had  formed  estabHshments  on  those 
of  the  peninsula  of  Kamtchatka.  But  they  had  not  yet,  by  their 
discoveries,  afforded  the  means  of  determining  whether  Asia  and 
America  were  united  on  the  north  into  one  continent,  or  were  sepa- 
j^tpd  by  a  direct  communication  between  the  Pacific  and  the  ocean 
p  1  of  Asia,  called  the  Arctic  or  Icy  Sea ;  nor,  indeed,  was  it 
r  .artained  that  the  sea  around  Kamtchatka  was  a  part  of  the 
Pacific,  though  it  was  generally  believed  to  be  so,  from  the  traditions 
preserved  by  the  natives  of  that  peninsula,  of  large  ships  having 
been  wrecked  on  their  coasts.* 

By  these  conquests  the  Russians  had  been  enabled  to  secure,  in 
addition  to  the  other  advantages,  a  commercial  intercourse  with 
China,  which  was  carried  on,  agreeably  to  a  treaty  concluded  in 
1689,  by  caravans,  passing  between  certain  great  marts  in  each 
empiio.  But  the  ambitious  czar  Peter,  who  then  filled  the  Russian 
throne,  was  not  content  with  such  acquisitions ;  he  was  anxious  to 
know  what  territories '  lay  beyond  the  sea  bounding  his  dominions 
in  the  east,  and  whether  he  could  not,  by  directing  his  forces  in 
that  way,  invade  the  establishments  of  the  French,  the  British,  or 
the  Spaniards,  in  America.  With  these  views,  he  ordered  that 
vessels  should  be  built  in  Kamtchatka,  and  equipped  for  voyages  of 
discovery,  to  be  made  according  to  instructions  which  he  himself 
drew  up ;  while,  at  the  same  time,  other  vessels  should  proceed 
from  Archangel,  on  the  White  Sea,  eastward,  to  explore  the  ocean 
north  of  Europe  and  Asia,  in  search  of  a  navigable  communication, 
or  north-east  passage,  through  it  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific. 

Various  circumstances  prevented  the  execution  of  any  of  these 
projects  iring  the  lifetime  of  Peter.  His  widow  and  successor, 
Catharine,  however,  resolved  to  carry  them  into  fulfilment ;  and  a 
small  vessel  was,  at  length,  in  1728,  completed  and  prepared  at  the 
mouth  of  the  River  of  Kamtchatka,  on  the  north-east  side  of  that 
peninsula,  for  a  voyage  of  discovery,  to  be  made  agreeably  to  the 
instructions  of  the  great  czar.  The  command  of  the  expedition 
was  intrusted  to  Vitus  Bering,  a  Dane,  who  had  been  selected  for 

*  The  particulars  related  in  the  present  chapter  are  derived,  principftlly,  from  the 
History  of  Kamtchatka,  by  Krascheninikof —  the  Account  of  the  Russian  Voyages 
from  Asia  to  America,  by  Muller  —  and  tl^e  Account  of  the  Discoveries  of  the  Russiant 
in  the  North  Pacific,  by  Coxe,  the  last  edition  of  which,  published  in  1803,  is  the 
mo^t  complete  work  on  the  subject. 


1728.] 


BERING  S    VOYAGE    TO   THE    ARCTIC    SEA. 


199 


the  purpose  by  Peter,  on  account  of  his  approved  courage  and 
nautical  skill ;  his  lieutenants  were  Alexei  Tchirikof^  a  Russian,  and 
Martin  Spangberg,  a  German,  each  of  whom  afterwards  acquired 
reputation  as  a  navigator. 

Bering  was  instructed,  ifirst — to  examine  the  coastfi  north  and 
east  from  Kamtchatka,  in  order  to  determine  whether  or  not  they 
were  connected  with,  or  contiguous  to,  America;  and  next  —  to 
reach,  if  possible,  some  port  belonging  to  Europeans  on  the  same 
sea.  With  these  objects  he  sailed  from  Kamtchatka  River,  on  the 
14th  of  July,  1728,  and,  taking  a  northward  course  along  the  Asiatic 
shore,  he  traced  it  to  the  latitude  of  67  degrees  18  minutes :  there 
he  found  the  coast  turning  almost  directly  westward,  and  presenting 
nothing  but  rocks  and  snow,  as  far  as  it  could  be  perceived,  whilst 
no  land  was  visible  in  the  north  or  east.  From  these  circumstances 
the  navigator  concluded  that  he  had  reached  the  north-eastern  ex- 
tremity of  Asia,  that  the  waters  in  which  he  was  sailing  were  those 
of  the  Icy  or  Arctic  Sea,  bounding  that  continent  on  the  north,  and, 
consequently,  that  he  had  ascertained  the  fact  of  the  separation  of 
Asia  from  America.  Being  satisfied, . '  "refore,  that  he  had  attained 
the  objects  of  his  voyage  in  that  direc^on,  and  fearing  that,  if  he 
should  attempt  to  advance  farther,  he  might  be  obliged  to  winter  in 
those  desolate  regions,  for  which  he  was  unprepared,  he  returned 
to  Kamtchatka,  where  he  arrived  on  the  2d  of  September.  All  his 
conclusions  have  been  since  verified ;  he,  however,  little  suspected 
that  he  had,  as  was  the  fact,  tioice  passed  mthin  a  few  leagues  of 
the  American  continent,  through  the  only  channel  connecting  the 
Pacific  with  the  Arctic  Sea,  When  the  existence  of  this  channe* 
was  satisfactorily  determined,  it  received,  by  universal  consent,  the 
name  of  Seringas  Strait  which  it  still  bears. 

In  the  ensuing  year,  Bering  attempted  to  reach  the  American 
continent,  by  sailing  directly  eastward  from  Kamtchatka ;  but,  ere 
he  had  proceeded  far  in  that'  course,  he  was  assailed  by  violent 
adverse  storms,  which  forced  his  vessel  around  the  southern  extrem- 
ity of  the  peninsula,  into  the  Gulf  of  Ochotsk.  He  then  went  to 
St.  Petersburg,  from  which  he  did  not  return  to  engage  in  another 
voyage  of  discovery  until  twelve  years  afterwards. 

While  Bering  thus  remained  at  the  Russian  capital,  the  existence 
of  a  direct  communication  between  the  sea  which  bathes  the  shores 
of  Kamtchatka  and  the  Pacific  was  proved,  —  first,  in  1729,  by  the 
wreck  of  a  Japanese  vessel  on  the  coast  of  the  peninsula, — and,  ten 
years  afterwards,  by  the  voyages  of  two  Russian  vessels,  under 
17 


130 


DISOOTERIFS   OF    SPANGBERG   AND    KRUPISCHEF. 


[1740. 


Martin  Spangberg  and  William  Walton,  from  Ochotsk,  through  the 
passages  between  the  Ktirile  Islands,  to  Japan.  Within  the  same 
period,  also,  the  connection  of  the  Pacific  with  the  Atlantic,  by  the 
Arctic  Sea,  north  of  Europe  and  Asia,  had  been  ascertained  by 
means  of  expeditions,  partly  on  land  and  partly  on  sea,  along  the 
northernmost  shores  of  the  continents;  though  all  the  attempts 
made  then,  and  since,  to  pass,  in  one  vessel,  around  those  coasts, 
from  Europe  to  the  Pacific,  have  proved  abortive.  Moreover,  a 
Russian  commander,  named  Krupischef,  had  sailed,  in  1732,  from 
Kamtchatka,  northward,  as  far  as  the  extreme  point  of  Asia,  which 
had  been  reached  l^  Bering  in  his  first  voyage ;  and  he  had  thence 
been  driven,  by  storms,  eastward,  upon  the  coast  of  an  extensive 
mountainous  territory,  which  was  supposed  to  be,  and  doubtless 
was,  a  part  of  America.  Thus  the  great  geographical  fact  of  the 
entire  separation  of  Asia  and  America  was  supposed  to  be  deter- 
mined ;  and  all  doubts  as  to  the  practicability  of  navigating  between 
the  Russian  dominions,  in  the  former  continent,  and  those  of  Spain, 
in  the  latter,  were  dissipated. 

These  discoveries  encouraged  the  empress  Anne,  who  had  suc- 
ceeded to  the  throne  of  Russia  in  1730,  to  persevere  ih  endeavoring 
to  extend  her  authority  farther  eastward;  and  she  accordingly 
commissioned  Bering,  in  1740,  to  make  another  expedition  from 
Kamtchatka,  in  search  of  America.  For  this  purpose,  two  vessels 
were  built  in  the  Bay  of  Avatscha,  on  the  south-east  side  of  Kamt- 
chatka, which  had  been  selected  for  the  establishment  of  a  marine 
depot ;  and  scientific  men  were  engaged,  in  France  and  Germany, 
to  accompany  Bering,  in  order  that  precise  information  might  be 
obtained  on  all  points  connected  with  the  seas  and  territories  to  be 
explored. 

Before  the  preparations  were  completed,  the  empress  Anne  died ; 
but  her  successor,  Elizabeth,  the  daughter  of  Peter  the  Great, 
immediately  declared  her  determination  to  prosecute  the  enterprise ; 
and,  no  delays  being  experienced,  the  vessels  sailed  together  from 
tiie  Bay  of  Avatscha,  on  the  4th  of  June,  1741.  The  larger  vessel, 
called  the  St.  Peter,  was  commanded  by  Bering ;  the  other,  the  St. 
Paul,  by  Tchirikof,  who  had  accompanied  the  Dane  in  his  previous 
voyages.  On  leaving  the  harbor,  they  took  an  eastern  course,  and 
continued  together  until  the  21st  of  the  month,  when  they  were 
separated  during  a  violent  gale,  after  which  they  never  met  again. 

Of  Bering's  voyage,  after  his  separation  from  Tchirikof,  the  only 
definite  accounts  are  contained  in  the  journal  of  Steller,  the  sui^eon 


1741.] 


BERING  8    VOTAQB   TO    AMERICA. 


181 


and  naturalist  of  the  ship,  which  was  first  published,  in  the  original 
German,  by  Profecdor  Pallas,  in  1795.  Before  that  year,  all  that 
was  known  on  tha  subject  was  derived  from  a  meagre  and  incorrect 
abstract  of  the  same  journal,  in  MuUer's  collections  of  Russian 
history.  Steller  is  by  no  means  precise  on  points  of  navigation 
and  geography,  in  consequence  of  which  very  few  spots  described 
by  him  can  now  be  identified,  although  the  general  course  of  the 
voyage  may  be  ascertained. 

From  Steller's  journal,  we  learn  that  Bering,  after  parting  with 
Tchirikof,  sailed  south-eastward,  as  far  as  the  46th  degree  of  lati- 
tude ;  and,  not  reaching  America,  he  then  altered  his  course  to  the 
north-east,  in  which  he  continued  until  the  Idth  of  July,  when  land 
was  seen  ahead,  nearly  under  the  60th  parallel  of  latitude.  The 
point  first  descried  by  the  Russians  was  a  mountain  of  such  extra- 
ordinary height,  as  to  be  visible  at  the  distance  of  more  than  eighty 
miles:  on  advancing  towards  it,  other  peaks,  and  then  ridges, 
appeared,  stretching  along  the  coast,  and  into  the  interior,  to  the 
utmost  limits  of  the  view;  and,  on  entering  a' narrow  passage, 
between  the  main  land  and  an  island,  where  they  anchored  on  the 
20th,  they  perceived  a  strong  current  of  discolored  water  issuing 
from  it,  which  convinced  them  that  a  large  river  emptied  into  the 
sea  in  its  vicinity.  From  these  indications  of  the  extensiveness  of 
the  territory,  together  with  its  geographical  position,  they  concluded 
that  they  had,  at  length,  reached  the  American  continent ;  and  the 
ofhcers  thereupon  entreated  their  conunpudc/  to  pursue  the  dis- 
covery towards  the  south-east,  in  which  direction  the  coast  trended. 
But  Bering  was  then  enfeebled  in  mind,  as  well  as  in  body,  by 
severe  illness,  and  was  anxious  to  return  to  Kamtchatka ;  in  conse- 
quence of  which,  he  resisted  their  entreaties,  and,  after  a  supply  of 
water  had  been  obtained  from  the  island,  they  set  sail  for  the  west. 
None  of  the  crew  were  allowed  to  go  on  the  main  land,  lest  they 
should  be  cut  off  by  savages.  On  the  island  were  found  several 
huts,  which  seemed  to  have  been  recently  abandoned,  and  various 
implements  of  fishing,  hunting,  and  cooking,  similar  to  those  used 
by  the  Kamtchatkans ;  of  the  natives,  however,  not  one  was  seen. 

According  to  Steller,  the  name  of  Cape  St.  Elias  was,  much  to 
his  discontent,  bestowed  on  this  island,  or  some  other  in  its  vicinity, 
because  it  was  reached  on  the  day  of  St.  Elias,  agreeably  to  the 
Russiavi  calendar.  The  old  accounts  of  the  expedition,  however, 
state  tiat  Bering  honored  with  the  name  of  that  saint  the  lofty 
mountiiin  which  had  first  attracted  his  attention ;  and,  under  this 


189 


BERING    ON    THE    AMERICAN    COAST. 


[1741. 


n«  i 


tt!t 


impression,  Cook,  when  he  explored  the  north-west  coast  of  Amer- 
ica, in  1778,  applied  the  name  of  Mount  St.  Eliat  to  a  stupendous 
peak  which  he  observed,  rising  from  the  shore,  under  the  60th 
parallel,  believing  it  to  be,  as  it  most  probably  was,  the  same  dis- 
covered by  the  Russians  in  1741.  Vancouver,  who  examined  this 
coast  minutely  in  1794,  was  convinced  that  the  place  where  the 
Russians  first  anchored  is  on  the  eastern  side  of  a  bay  at  the  foot 
of  Mount  St.  Elias,  on  the  east,  which  is  called  Admiralty  or 
Bering* a  Bay,  on  English  maps,  and  lakutat  on  those  of  the 
Russians.  The  current  of  discolored  water,  setting  out  from  that 
part  of  the  coast,  was  observed,  in  1838  by  Belcher. 

After  their  departure  from  the  island,  the  Russians  continued 
sailing  westward,  occasionally  seeing  the  land  in  the  north,  until  the 
3d  of  August,  when,  in  the  latitude  of  56  degrees,  they  beheld  a 
chain  of  high  mountains,  (those  of  the  great  peninsula  of  Aliaska, 
and  the  contiguous  island  of  Kodiak,)  stretching  before  them  from 
north  to  south.  Upon  discovering  this  impediment  to  their  prog- 
ress, they  turned  to  the  south-west,  in  order  to  reach  the  53d 
parallel,  under  which  they  were  sure,  from  their  observations  in 
coming  out,  that  they  should  find  an  open  sea  to  Kamtchatka :  but 
their  course  was  so  much  retarded  by  violent  opposing  winds,  that 
they  had  scarcely  advanced  sixty  miles  before  the  end  of  the  month ; 
and,  being  then  exhausted  by  fatigue  and  sickness,  they  anchored 
among  a  group  of  small  islands,  on  one  of  which  they  remained 
ashore  several  days.  There  they  first  saw  natives  of  America,  who 
resembled  the  aborigines  of  Northern  Asia  in  their  features  and 
habits,  and  were  provided  with  knives,  and  other  articles  of  iron 
and  copper;  although  they  appeared  never  before  to  have  held 
any  intercourse  with  civilized  people.  There,  also,  occurred  the 
first  death  among  the  Russians,  in  commemoration  of  which,  the 
name  of  the  deceased  sailor,  Schumagin,  was  bestowed  on  the 
group.  The  islands  now  so  called  are  about  ten  in  number,  situated 
near  the  latitude  of  55^  degrees,  on  the  eastern  side,  and  not  far 
from  the  extremity  of  Aliaska. 

On  quitting  the  Schumagin  Islands,  the  Russians  continued  their 
course  south-westward,  and  passed  by  other  islands,  which  were 
those  of  the  Aleutian  Archipelago,  extending  westward  from  Aliaska, 
nearly  under  the  53d  parallel.  They  were  then  assailed  by  furious 
storms,  and  were,  for  nearly  two  months,  driven  over  the  seas  at 
random,  while  famine,  disease,  and  despair,  were  daily  lessening 
their  numbers.     "  The  general  distress  and  mortality,"  says  Steller, 


if  1 


[1741. 


1741.] 


DEATH    or    BERING. 


133 


Amer- 
endouB 
3  60th 
ne  dis- 
ed  this 
ere  the 
he  foot 
11%   or 
of  the 
)m  that 

►ntinued 
jntil  the 
teheld  a 
Aliaska, 
;m  from 
eir  prog- 
the  53d 
itions  in 
tka:  but 
inds,  that 
3  month ; 
anchored 
remained 
rica,  who 
ures  and 
of  iron 
lave  held 
irred  the 
hich,  the 
on   the 
,  situated 
not  far 

lued  their 
lich  were 
Aliaska, 
Ly  furious 
seas  at 
[lessening 
Steller, 


« increased  so  fast,  that  not  only  the  sick  died,  but  those  who  pre- 
tended to  be  healthy,  when  relieved  from  their  posts,  fainted  and 
fell  down  dead ;  of  which  the  scantiness  of  the  water,  the  want  of 
biscuits  and  brandy,  cold,  wet,  nakedness,  vermin,  and  terror,  were 
not  the  least  causes."  At  length,  on  the  5th  of  November,  they 
again  saw  land,  which  proved  to  be  an  island,  in  the  latitude  of  55 
degrees ;  and  on  it  they  resolved,  at  all  hazards,  to  pass  the  winter. 
With  this  view,  they  anchored  in  the  most  secure  place  which  could 
be  found,  close  to  the  shore,  and,  having  landed  their  stores  and 
other  necessaries,  they  began  the  construction  .of  huts  out  of  sails 
and  spars ;  but  they  soon  had  an  abundant  supply  of  materials  from 
the  wreck  of  their  vessel,  which  was  dashed  in  pieces  on  the  island 
by  the  waves. 

On  the  8th  of  December  Bering  expired,  worn  down  by  sickness, 
fatigue,  and  disappointment,  and  thirty  of  the  crew  were  consigned 
to  their  graves  on  the  island  before  the  ensuing  summer.  The  sur- 
vivors recovered  their  health,  and  obtained  a  sufficiency  of  food,  by 
hunting  the  sea  and  land  animals,  which  were  found  in  great  num- 
bers on  and  about  the  shores.  As  soon  as  the  mild  season  returned, 
they  collected  the  pieces  of  the  wreck,  of  which  they  made  a  small 
vessel;  and,  having  provisioned  it  as  well  as  they  could,  they  set 
sail  from  the  western  side  of  the  island  on  the  14th  of  August,  1742. 
Two  days  after,  they  made  the  coast  of  Kamtchatka ;  and,  continuing 
along  it  towards  the  south,  they,  on  the  evening  of  the  27th,  landed, 
forty-six  in  number,  at  the  place  in  the  Bay  of  Avatscha  from  which 
they  had  taken  their  departure  fifteen  months  before.  The  island, 
on  which  they  had  thus  passed  more  than  nine  months,  is  situated 
about  eighty  miles  from  the  eastern  shore  of  Kamtchatka,  between 
the  latitudes  of '54^  and  55^  degrees,  and  has,  ever  since  its  dis- 
covery, been  called  Bering's  Isle;  it  consists  entirely  of  granite 
mountains. 

Such  were  the  occurrences,  and  the  unfortunate  termination,  of 
Bering's  voyage. 

Tchirikof,  likewise,  pursuing  an  eastward  course,  discovered  land 
in  the  latitude  of  56  degrees.  It  was  a  mountainous  territory,  with 
steep,  rocky  shores,  extending  on  the  ocean  from  north  to  south ; 
and,  the  weather  being  unfavorable  for  approaching  it,  ten  men  were 
sent  in  a  Doat  to  make  examinations.  As  these  did  not  return,  after 
some  time,  nor  make  any  signal  from  the  shore,  six  others  were 
despt^tched  in  search  of  them,  whose  reappearance  was  also  ex- 
pected in  vain ;  and  Tchirikof  was  obliged,  at  length,  to  quit  the 


:|i 


<59K!r^-7«r^j 


ilt^ 


134 


yOTAOB    or  TCHIRIKOr. 


[1741. 


"il 


'Ma 


coast  without  learning  what  had  befallen  any  of  them.  In  the 
mean  time,  the  scurvy  had  broken  out  among  his  crew  ;  and  aa  the 
stormy  season  was  approaching,  he  resolved  to  hasten  back  to  Kamt- 
chatka.  His  voyage  thither  was  attended  with  great  difficulties, 
and  before  the  8th  of  October,  when  he  reached  Avatscha,  he  had 
lost  twenty-one  men  by  sickness,  including  the  distinguished  French 
naturalist  Dclile  do  Croyerc,  in  addition  to  the  sixteen  whose  fate 
was  undetermined.  The  land  discovered  by  him  must  have  been, 
agreeably  to  the  account  given  of  its  latitude  and  bearings,  the 
western  side  of  one.  v  f  the  islands,  named,  on  English  maps,  the 
Prince  of  fVales's  Archipelago,  the  inhabitants  of  which  are  remark- 
able for  their  Herceness  and  hatred  to  strangers.  It  is,  therefore, 
most  probable  that  the  men  sent  ashore  by  Tchirikof  were  murdered 
as  soon  as  they  landed. 

These  discoveries  of  the  Russians  excited  some  attention  in 
Europe,  where  they  were  made  known,  first,  by  the  periodical  pub- 
lications of  France,  England,  and  Germany,  and  afterwards  more 
fully,  by  the  scientific  men  and  historians  of  those  countries.  In 
1750,  a  long  memoir  on  the  subject  was  read  bv  the  French  geog- 
rapher Delisle,  before  the  Academy  of  Sciences  of  Paris,*  wherein 
he  gives  the  highest  praise  to  the  Russian  navigators,  and  pro- 
nounces, as  proved  by  their  expeditions,  "  that  the  eastern  portion 
of  Asia  extends  under  the  polar  circle,  towards  the  western  part  of 
America,  from  which  it  is  separated  by  a  strait  about  thirty  leagues 
wide ;  this  strait  is  often  frozen  over,  but,  when .  free  from  ice,  it 
affords  communication  for  vessels  into  the  Frozen  Ocean." 

The  Russian  government  did  not,  however,  consider  the  dis- 
coveries of  its  subjects  as  sufficiently  important  to  justify  the  imme- 
diate despatch  of  other  vessels  in  the  same  direction ;  and  no 
further  attempts  to  explore  the  North  Pacific  were  made  by  its 
authority  until  1766.  In  the  mean  time,  accidental  circumstances, 
connected  with  Beri  ig's  last  voyage,  had  drawn  the  attention  of 
individuals  in  Eastern  Asia  to  the  islands  seen  by  that  navigator, 
on  his  return  towards  Kamtchatka ;  and  the  part  of  the  ocean  in 
which  those  islands  lie  had  been  thoroughly  searched. 

It  has  been  mentioned,  that  the  crew  of  Bering's  vessel,  during 
the  period  passed  by  them  in  the  island,  near  Kamtchatka,  had  sub- 
sisted chiefly  on  the  flesh  of  the  sea  and  land  animals  found  there. 
The  skins  of  these  animals,  particularly  of  the  black  foxes  and  sea 
otters,  were  preserved  by  the  men,  and  carried  with  them  to  Kamt- 

*  Histoire  de  I'Academie  Royale  des  Sciences,  for  1750,  p.  143. 


1760.] 


VOTAQCS    or    RUIBUN    TVH   TRADERl. 


135 


chntka,  where  they  were  iold  at  >uch  high  prices,  that  several  of 
the  seamen,  as  well  as  other  persons,  were  induced  immediately  to 
go  to  the  island  and  procure  .further  supplies.  In  the  course  of  the 
voyages  made  for  this  purpose,  other  islands,  farther  east,  which  had 
been  seen  by  Bering  and  Tchirikof,  were  explored,  and  found  to 
oft'cr  the  same  advantages ;  and  the  number  of  persons  employed  in 
seeking  furs  was  constantly  increasing. 

The  trade  thus  Commenced  was,  for  some  time,  carried  on  by 
individual  adventurers,  each  of  whom  was  alternately  a  seaman,  a 
hunter,  and  a  merchant;  at  length,  however,  some  capitalists  in 
Siberia  employed  their  funds  in  the  pursuit,  and  expeditions  to  the 
islands  were,  in  consequence,  made  on  a  more  extensive  scale,  and 
with  greater  regularity  and  efficiency.*  Trading  sta'  Ions  were  estab- 
lished at  particular  points,  where  the  furs  were  collected  by  persons 
left  for  that  object ;  and  vessels  were  sent,  at  stated  periods,  f:.  jm 
the  ports  of  Asiatic  Russia,  to  carry  the  articles  requited  for  tt:<  use 
of  the  agents  and  hunters,  or  for  barter  with  the  natives,  and  to 
bring  away  the  skins  collected. 

The  vessels  employed  in  this  commerce  were,  in  all  re.  oct*, 
wretched  and  insecure,  the  planks  being  merely  attached  tctreth^r, 
without  iron,  by  leathern  thongs ;  and,  as  no  instruments  were  used 
by  the  traders  for  determining  latitudes  or  longitudes  at  sea,  their 
ideas  of  the  relative  positions  of  the  places  which  they  visited  were 
vague  and  incorrect.  Their  navigation  was,  indeed,  performed  in 
the  most  simple  and  unscientific  manner  possible.  A  vessel  mailing 
from  the  Bay  of  Avatscha,  or  from  Cape  Lopatka,  the  southern  ex- 
tremity of  Kamtchatka,  could  not  have  gone  far  eastward,  without 
falling  in  with  one  of  the  Aleutian  Islands,  which  would  serve  as  a 
mark  for  her  course  to  another ;  and  thus  she  might  go  on,  from 
point  to  point,  throughout  the  whole  chain.  I*^  like  manner  she 
would  return  to  Asia,  and,  if  her  course  and  rr  .e  of  sailing  were 
observed  with  tolerable  care,  there  could  seldom  be  any  uncertainty 
as  to  whether  she  were  north  or  south  of  the  line  of  the  islands. 
Many  vessels  were,  nevertheless,  annually  loot,  in  consequence  of 


*  The  islands  discovered  and  frequented  by  the  Russian  fur  traders  were  those 
called  the  Aleyutsky,  or  Aleutian,  extending  in  a  line  nearly  along  the  63d  parallel 
of  latitude,  from  the  south-west  extremity  of  the  peninsula  Aliaska,  across  the  sea, 
to  the  vicinity  of  Kamtchatka.  Aliaska  was,  likewise,  supposed  to  be  an  island, 
until  1778,  when  its  connection  with  the  American  continent  was  ascertained  by 
Cook.  The  inhabitants  of  these  islands  were  a  bold  race,  who,  for  some  time, 
resisted  the  Russians,  but  were  finally  subdued,  after  their  numbers  had  been  con- 
liderably  reduced. 


't;;.l 


136 


VOYAGES    OP    RUSSIAN   FUR   TRADERS. 


[1760. 


-■I    ^.- 


II  .,'t; 


i      ^K 


this  want  of  knowledge  of  the  coasts,  and  want  of  means  to  ascer- 
tain positions  at  sea ;  and  a  large  number  of  those  engaged  in  the 
trade,  moreover,  fell  victims  to  cold,  starvation,  and  scurvy,  and  to  the 
enmity  of  the  bold  natives  of  the  islands.  Even  as  lately  as  1806,* 
it  was  calculated  that  one  third  of  these  vessels  were  lost  in  each 
year.  The  history  of  the  Russian  trade  and  establishments  on  the 
North  Pacific,  is  a  series  of  details  of  dreadful  disasters  and  suffer- 
ings ;  and,  whatever  opinions  may  be  entertained  as  to  the  humanity 
of  the  adventurers,  or  the  morality  of  their  proceedings,  the  courage 
and  perseverance  displayed  by  them,  in  struggling  against  such 
appalling  difficulties,  must  command  universal  admiration. 

The  furs  collected,  by  these  means,  at  Avatscha  and  Ochotsk,  the 
principal  fur-trading  ports,  were  carried  to  IrJcutsJc,  the  capital  of 
Eastern  Siberia,  whence  some  of  them  were  taken  to  Europe ;  the 
greater  portion  were,  however,  sent  to  Kxdkta,  a  small  town  just 
within  the  Russian  frontier,  close  to  the  Chinese  town  of  Maimatchin, 
through  which  places  all  the  commerce  between  these  two  empires 
passed,  agreeably  to  a  treaty  concluded  at  Kiakta,  in  1728.  In 
return  for  the  furs,  which  brought  higher  prices  in  China  than  any 
where  else,  teas,  tobacco,  rice,  porcelain,  and  silk  and  cotton  goods, 
were  brought  to  Irkutsk,  whence  all  the  most  valuable  of  those 
articles  were  sent  to  Europe.  These  transportations  were  effected 
by  land,  except  in  some  places,  where  the  rivers  were  used  as  the 
channel  of  conveyance ;  no  commercial  exportation  having  been 
made  from  Eastern  Russia,  by  sea,  before  1779 :  and,  when  the 
immense  distances,!  between  some  of  the  points  above  mentioned, 
are  considered,  it  becomes  evident  that  none  but  objects  of  great 
value,  in  comparison  with  their  bulk,  at  the  place  of  their  con- 
sumption, could  have  been  thus  transported,  with  profit  to  those 
engaged  in  the  trade,  and  that  a  large  portion  of  the  price  paid  by 
the  consumer  must  have  been  absorbed  by  the  expense  of  trans- 
portation. A  skin  was,  in  fact,  generally  worth,  at  Kiakta,  three 
times  as  much  as  it  cost  at  Ochotsk. 

The  Russian  government  appears  to  have  remained  almost  en- 
tirely unacquainted  with  the  voyages  and  discoveries  of  its  subjects, 


*  Krusenbtarn's  journal  of  his  voyage  to  the  North  Pacific. 

t  In  the  following  table,  each  number  expresses  nearly  the  distance,  in  geographical 
miles,  between  the  places  named  on  either  side  of  it :  — 

St.  Petersburg,  460,  Moscow,  1500,  Tobolsk,  1800,  Irkutsk,  1550,  Yakutsk,  600, 
Ochotsk,  1300,  Petropawlowsk,  on  the  Bay  of  Avatscha;  Irkutsk,  300,  Kiakta, 
1000,  Pekin. 


[1760. 

to  ascer- 
1  in  the 
id  to  the 
s  1806* 
;  in  each 
ts  on  the 
id  suffer- 
humanity 
e  courage 
inst  such 

hotsk,  the  . 
capital  of 
irope ;  the 
town  just 
laimatchin, 
vo  empires 
1728.    In 
1  than  any 
tton  goods, 
le  of  those 
re  efTected 
ised  as  the 
paving  been 
,  when  the 
mentioned, 
;ts  of  great 
their  con- 
Ifit  to  those 
ice  paid  by 
16  of  trans- 
liakta,  three 

almost  en- 
I  its  subjects. 


In  geograpbical 

I  Yakutsk,  600, 
300,  Kiakta, 


1768.] 


VOYAGE    OF    KRENITZIN   AND   LEVASCHEF. 


137 


engaged  in  the  fur  trade  of  the  North  Pacific,  until  1764,  when  the 
empress  Catharine  II.  ordered  that  proper  measures  should  be 
taken  to  procure  exact  information  with  regard  to  the  islands,  and 
the  American  coasts,  opposite  her  dominions  in  Asia.  This  am- 
bitious sovereign  had  then  just  ascended  the  throne,  and  was,  or 
chose  to  appear,  determined  to  carry  out  the  views  of  Peter  the 
Great  for  the  extension  of  the  Russian  empire  eastward  beyond  the 
Pacific. 

^Agreeably  to  the  orders  of  Catharine,  Lieutenant  Synd  sailed,  in 
},  from  Ochotsk,  and  advanced  northward,  along  the  coast  of 
Kamtchatka,  as  far  as  the  66th  degree  of  latitude ;  and,  in  the  fol- 
lowing year,  he  made  another  voyage  in  the  same  direction,  in 
which  he  is  supposed  to  have  landed  on  the  American  continent. 
Very  few  particulars  respecting  his  expeditions  are,  however,  known, 
as  the  Russian  government  appears  to  have  suppressed  all  accounts 
of  them,  for  reasons  which  have  been  suggested,  but  which  it  is 
unnecessary  here  to  repeat. 

In  1768,  another  expedition  was  commenced,  for  the  purpose  of 
surveying  the  islands.  With  this  object.  Captains  Krenitzin  and 
Levaschef  quitted  the  mouth  of  Kamtchatka  River,  in  July,  each 
commanding  a  small  vessel ;  and,  after  cursorily  examining  Bering's 
Isle,  and  others  near  the  coast  of  the  peninsula,  they  stretched 
across  to  the  Fox  Islands,  the  largest  and  easternmost  of  the  Archi- 
pelago, among  which  they  passed  the  winter.  Before  the  ensuing 
summer,  nearly  half  the  crews  of  both  vessels  had  perished  from 
scurvy;  and,  when  the  navigators  returned  to  Kamtchatka,'  in 
October,  1769,  they  had  done  nothing  more  than  to  ascertain,  ap- 
proximately, the  geographical  positions  of  a  few  points  in  the  Aleu- 
tian chain.  It  appears,  indeed,  that  Krenitzin  had  employed  him- 
self exclusively  in  collecting  furs,  with  which  his  vessel  was  laden 
on  her  arrival  from  her  voyage.  The  only  valuable  information  ob- 
tained by  the  Russian  government,  through  this  costly  expedition, 
related  to  the  mode  of  conducting  the  fur  trade  between  Kamt- 
chatka and  the  islands ;  upon  which  subject  the  reports  of  Levaschef 
were  curious  and  instructive,  and  served  to  direct  the  government 
in  its  first  administrative  dispositions,  with  regard  to  the  newly- 
discovered  territories. 

The  expedition  of  Krenitzin  and  Levaschef  was  the  last  made  by 

the  Russians  in  the  North  Pacific,  for  purposes  of  discovery  or 

investigation,  before  1783.     In  1771,  however,  took  place  the  first 

voyage  from  the  eastern  coast  of  the  empire,  to  a  port  frequented 

18 


iii 


*. 


m^ 


¥^' 


i.^1 


138 


VOYAGK    OF    BCNTOWSKY. 


[1771. 


by  the  ships  of  European  nations ;  and,  strange  to  say,  this  voyage 
was  conducted  under  the  Potith  fiag !  In  the  month  of  May  of 
that  year^  a  few  persons,  chiefly  Poles,  who  had  been  exiled  to 
Kamtchatka  for  political  reasons,  succeeded  in  overpowering  the 
garrison  of  the  small  town  of  Eolscheretsk,  on  the  south-west  side 
of  Kamtchatka,  where  they  wctc  detained,  and  escaped  to  sea  in 
a  vessel  then  lying  in  the  harbor.  They  were  directed  in  their 
enterprise  by  Count  Maurice  de  Benyowsky,  a  Hungarian,  who  had 
been  an  oflicer  in  the  Polish  service,  and  from  whose  history  of  his 
own  life,  afterwards  published,  ail  the  accounts  of  tlieir  adventures 
are  derived.  From  these  accounts,  it  appears  that  the  fugitives,  on 
entering  the  Pacific,  were  driver^  northward  as  far  as  the  66th 
degree  of  latitude;  during  which  part  of  their  voyage,  they  fre- 
quently saw  the  coasts  of  both  continents,  and  visited  several  of 
the  Aleutian  Islands.  At  Bering's  Isle  they  found  a  number  of  . 
fugitive  exiles,  like  themselves,  established  in  possession,  under  the 
command  of  a  Saxon ;  and  at  Unalashka,  the  largest  of  the  group, 
they  discovered  crosses,  with  inscriptions,  erected  by  Krenitzin,  in 
1768.  1  roceeding  thence  towards  the  south,  they  touched  at 
several  places  in  the  Kurile,  Japan,  and  Loochoo  Islands,  as  also 
at  Formosa;  and,  at  length,  in  September,  they  arrived  at  Canton, 
wl\ere  they  carried  the  first  furs  which  ever  entered  that  city  by  sea.* 
A  circumstantial  account  of  the  principal  voyages  and  discoveries 
of  the  Russians,  made  between  1741  and  1770,  drawn  from  original 
sources,  was  published  at  St.  Petersburg,  in  1774,  by  J.  L.  Stoehlin, 
councillor  of  state  to  the  empress.f  These  records  are  curious  and 
interesting,  but  they  throw  very  little  light  on  the  great  geographical 
questions  relative  to  that  part  of  the  world,  which  then  remained 
unsolved  ;  and  the  accompanying  chart  only  serves,  at  present,  to 
show  more  conspicuously  the  value  of  the  discoveries  effected  by 
other  nations.  According  to  this  chart,  the  American  coast  ex- 
tended, on  the  Pacific,  in  a  line  nearly  due  north-west  from  Cali- 

*  Memoirs  and  Travels  of  Maurice  Augustus  Count  de  Benyowsky,  written  by 
himseli,  published  at  London,  in  1790.  Benyowsky's  account  of  his  escape  from 
Kamtchatka,  and  his  voyage  to  China,  were  for  some  time  discredited ;  but  they  liave 
since  been  confirmed,  at  least  as  regards  the  principal  circumstances.  He  afterwards 
had  a  variety  of  adventures,  especially  in  Madagascar,  of  which  he  pretended  to  be 
the  rightful  sovereign ;  and  he  was,  at  length,  killed  at  Foul  Point,  in  that  island,  in 
May,  1786,  while  at  the  head  of  a  party  of  Europeans  and  natives,  in  a  contest  with 
the  French  from  the  Isle  of  France. 

t  Description  of  the  newly-discovered  Islands  in  the  Sea  between  Asia  and 
America.  A  translation  of  the  greater  part  of  this  work  may  be  found  in  the  lut 
edition  of  Coxe's  History  of  Russian  Discoveries. 


1776.] 


ERRORS    IN   THE    EARLY    RUSSIAN   MAPS. 


139 


fornia,  to  the  70th  degree  of  latitude,  and  was  separated  from  the 
opposite  coast  of  Asia  by  a  wide  expanse  of  sea,  containing  many 
islands,  several  of  which  correspond  in  name  with  those  of  the 
Aleutian  Archipelago,  though  the  positions  assigned  to  them  are 
far  from  correct:  the  largest  of  the  islands  there  represented, 
called  Alascha,  lies  under  the  67th  parallel,  between  the  western- 
most point  of  America  and  the  most  eastern  of  Asia.  In  the  beau- 
tiful map  of  the  Russian  empire,  published  at  St.  Petersbui^  by 
Treschot  and  Schmidt,  in  1776,  no  land,  except  some  islands,  ap- 
pears within  twenty-five  degrees  of  longitude  east  of  Kamtchatka. 
Other  maps,  however,  which  appeared  at  a  much  earlier  period, 
offer  a  view  more  nearly  correct  of  the  extreme  north-western  coasts 
of  America,  although  the  geographer  who  constructed  them  must 
have  been  guided  almost  entirely  by  suppositions. 

The  errors  of  latitude,  in  all  these  maps,  were  very  great,  amount- 
ing to  ten  degrees,  in  some  instances ;  and  those  of  longitude  were, 
as  may  be  readily  supposed,  much  more  considerable.  Indeed, 
before  1778,  when  Cook  made  his  voyage  through  the  North 
Pacific,  the  differe'^ces  in  longitude,  between  places  in  that  part 
of  the  ocean,  had  never  been  estimated  otherwise  than  by  the  dead 
reckoning,  which,  however  carefully  observed,  cannot  aflford  accurate 
results ;  n6r  had  any  relation,  which  could  be  considered  as  nearly 
correct,  been  established  between  the  meridian  of  any  point  on  the 
Atlantic  and  that  of  any  point  on  the  North  Pacific. 


1 
f 
,■1 

I II  In 

I'jiir' 


140 


.■i  ^    i  ■:'m 


CHAPTER   VI. 
1763  TO  1780. 

Great  Britain  cbtains  PosseHion  of  Canada — Journey  of  Carver  to  the  Upper  Mii- 
Biisippi  —  First  Mention  of  the  Oregon  River  —  Inaccuraby  of  Carver's  Statements 
—Journeys  of  Hearne  through  the  Regions  west  of  Hudson's  Bay — Voyage  of 
Captain  Cook  to  the  North  Pacific — His  important  Discoveries  in  that  Quarter, 
and  Death — Return  of  his  Ships  to  Europe ;  Occurrences  at  Canton  during  their 
Stoy  in  that  Port. 

Whilst  the  Russians  were  thus  prosecuting  the  fur  trade  on 
the  north-westernmost  coasts  of  America,  the  British  were  engaged 
in  the  same  pursuit  on  the  north-eastern  side  of  the  continent. 

It  has  been  already; mentioned  that  King  Charles  II.  of  England, 
in  1669,  granted  to  an  association  of  gentlemei.  and  merchants  of 
London  the  possession  of  all  the  territories  surrounding  Hudson's 
Bay,  and  the  exclusive  trade  in  those  regions,  with  the  object,  ex- 
pressed in  the  charter,  of  encouraging  his  subjects  to  prosecute  the 
search  for  a  north-west  passage  for  ships  from  that  sea  to  the  Pacific 
Ocean.  Under  the  protection  of  this  charter,  the  Hudson's  Bay 
Company  erected  forts  and  trading  establishments  on  the  shores  of 
the  bay,  and  carried  on  an  extensive  and  profitable  trade  with  the 
natives  of  that  part  of  America,  to  the  annoyance  of  the  French, 
who,  also,  claimed  the  country  as  part  of  Canada,  and  more  than 
once  dislodged  the  British  traders.  It  was,  indeed,  provided  by 
the  treaty  of  Utrecht,  in  1714,  that  the  Hudson's  Bay  territories 
should  belong  to  the  former  nation,  and  that  commissaries  should 
be  appointed,  on  both  sides,  to  settle  tiie  line  separating  those  terri- 
tories from  Canada:  but  no  such  boundary  was  ever  fixed,  by 
commissaries  or  otherwise,  as  will  be  shown  hereafter ;  *  and  the 
limits  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  territories  remained  undetermined  in 
1763,  when  Canada,  with  all  the  other  dominions  of  France  in 
North  America,  east  of  the  Mississippi,  were  ceded  to  Great  Britain 
by  the  treaty  of  Paris. 

• .   I  *  See  chap,  xiii.,  and  Proofs  and  Illustrations,  letter  F. 


1766.] 


CANADA    CEDED   TO    GREAT   BRITAIN. 


141 


engaged 
lent. 
England, 
chants  of 
Hudson's 
)bject,  ex- 
ecute the 
he  Pacific 
son's  Bay 
shores  of 
!  with  the 
French, 
tore  than 
tvided  by 
territories 
ie'  should 
lose  terri- 
fixed,  by 
and  the 
mined  in 
ranee  in 
>at  Britain 


How  far  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  also,  endeavored  to  fulfil 
the  intention  expressed  in  the  charter,  of  promoting  the  search 
for  a  north-west  passage,  it  is  unnecessary  here  to  inquire ;  suffice 
it  to  say,  that,  at  the  end  of  a  century  from  the  date  of  the  con- 
cession, the  question,  as  to  the  existence  of  such  a  channel,  was 
nearly  in  the  same  state  as  at  the  commencement  of  that  period. 
Hudson's  Bay  had  been  navigated  by  Middleton,  in  1741,  t6  the 
66th  degree  of  latitude,  beyond  which  it  was  known  to  extend ; 
Baffin's  Bay  had  not  been  visited  since  the  beginning  of  the  seven- 
teenth century,  when  it  was  examined  imperfectly  to  the  74th 
parallel.  The  territories  west  of  both  these  seas  were  entirely  unex- 
plored ;  but  accounts,  whic)  seemed  to  merit  some  credit,  had  been 
received  from  the  Indians,  of  great  rivers  and  other  waters  in  that 
direction.  The  desired  communication  wfth  the  Pacific  might, 
therefore,  exist ;  or  the  Pacific,  or  some  navigable  river  falling  into 
it,  might  be  found  within  a  short  distance  of  places  on  the  Atlantic 
side  of  the  continent,  accessible  to  vessels  from  Europe :  and  the 
determination  of  these  questions  became  infinitely  more  important 
to  Great  Britain,  after  the  acquisition  of  Canada. 

The  region  extending  south-west,  (rom  Hudson's  Bay  to  the 
groat  lakes,  and  the  head  waters  of  th^  Mississippi,  had  long  been 
frequented  by  the  traders  from  Canada  and  Louisiana,  and  had  been 
partially  surveyed  by  French  officers  and  missionaries,  by  whom 
several  journals,  histories,  and  maps,  relating  to  those  countries, 
had  been  given  to  the  world.  This  region  was  also  visited,  imme- 
diately after  the  transfer  of  Canada  to  Great  Britain,  by  an  Amer- 
ican, wiiose  travels  are  here  mentioned,  because  he  is  supposed  to 
have  thrown  much  light  upon  the  geography  of  North-west  America 
by  his  own  observations,  and  by  information  collected  from  the 
Indians  of  the  Upper  Mississippi. 

This  traveller,  Captain  Jonathan  Carver,  of  Connecticut,  who 
had  served  with  some  credit  in  the  war  against  the  French,  partic- 
ularly in  the  country  about  Lakes  Champlain  and  George,  set  out 
from  Boston  in  1766,  and  proceeded,  by  way  of  Detroit  and 
Michilimackinac,  to  the  regions  of  the  Upper  Mississippi,  now 
forming  the  territories  of  Wisconsin  and  Iowa,  where  he  spent 
two  years  among  the  Indians.  His  object  was,  as  he  says  in  the 
introduction  to  his  narrative,  "after  gaining  a  knowledge  of  the 
manners,  customs,  languages,  soil,  and  natural  productions,  of  the 
different  nations  that  inhabit  the  back  of  the  Mississippi,  to  ascer- 
tain the  breadth  of  the  vast  continent  which  extends   from  the 


1    .? 


149 


TRAVELS    OF    CARVER. 


[1766. 


mm 


Atlantic  to  the  Pacific  Ocean,  in  its  broadest  part,  between  the  43d 
and  the  46th  degrees  of  northern  latitude.  Had  I  been  able,"  he 
continues,  "to  accomplish  this,  I  intended  to  have  proposed  to 
government  to  establish  a  post  in  some  of  those  parts,  about  the 
Strait  of  Anian,  which,  having  been  discovoref!  by  S'n  Frencis 
Drake,  of  coutb-?  belongs  to  the  English.  Thia  I  arn  convinced, 
would  greatly  iidcilitate  the  discovery  of  a  north-west  passag ;%  or 
commuir<.uition  between  Hudson's  Ray  and  'he  Pi'<  ific  Ocei?;." 
This  extensive  i>lan  he  tv;is,  however,  unable  to  pursiue,  havijig 
been  disappointed  in  his  intention  to  pvirchase  joods,  and  then  to 
pursue  his  journey  fiom  the  T  pper  Missiisisippi,  "by  way  of  the 
Lakes  Dubois,  Dupluie,  and  Ouinipique,  [the  old  I^'rench  names  u 
Rainy  Lake,  Lake  of  lae  Woodf,  and  Lal-R  Winnipeg,^  to  (he  head 
waters  of  tlie  Great  River  of  the  West,  which  falls  iuto  'he  fcstiait  of  . 
Anian."* 

This  Great  River  of  the  West  is  several  times  menuoned  by  Carver, 
ander  i'h)  name  of  Oregon,  or  Origan.  In  another  part  of  his 
intnxinctiofl,  he  refers  to  his  account,  in  the  journal,  "of  the 
situaUoji  of  the  four  great  rivers  that  take  their  rise  within  a  few 
kagues  of  each  other,  nearly  about  the  centre  of  the  great  con- 
tinent, viz.,  the  River  Bourbon,  [Red  River  of  the  north,]  which 
empties  itself  into  Hudson^  Bay,  the  waters  of  the  St.  Lawrence, 
the  Mississippi,  and  the  River  Oregon,  or  Iliver  of  the  West,  that 
falls  into  the  Pacific  Ocean  at  the  Straits  of  Anian."  At  the  con- 
clusion of  his  work,  also,  in  speaking  of  a  project  which  had  been 
formed,  in  1774,  by  himself,  Mr.  Whitworth,  a  member  of  tho 
British  parliament,  and  other  persons  in  London,  to  cross  the 
American  continent,  he  says  4hat  they  would  have  "  proceeded  up 
the  River  St.  Pierre,  [St.  Peter's,]  and  from  thence  up  a  branch 
of  the  River  Messorie,  till,  having  discovered  the  source  of  the 
Oregon,  or  River  of  the  West,  on  the  other  side  of  the  summit  of  the 
lands  that  divide  the  waters  which  fall  into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico 
from  those  that  fall  into  the  Pacific  Ocean,  they  would  have  sailed 


iif     ■!■• 


*  Travels  throughout  the  interior  Parts  of  North  America,  in  1766 — 8,  by  Jona- 
than Carver,  London,  1778.  It  conaJBts  of — an  introduction,  showing, what  the 
author  had  done  and  wished  to  do  —  a  journal  of  his  travels,  with  descriptions  of  the 
countries  visited,  and  —  an  account  of  the  origin,  habits,  religion,  and  languages, 
of  the  Indians  of  the  country  about  the  Upper  Mississippi,  which  account  occupies 
two  thirds  of  the  work,  and  is  extracted  almost  entirely,  and,  in  many  parts,  veriattffl, 
from  the  French  journals  and  histories.  The  book  was  written,  or  rather  made  up, 
at  London,  at  the  suggeation  of  Dr.  Lettsom  and  other  gentlemen,  and  printed  for 
the  purpose  of  relieving  the  wants  of  the  author,  who,  however,  died  there,  in  misery, 
in  1780,  at  the  age  of  49. 


[1766. 

he  43d 
le,"  he 
}sed  to 
out  the 
Francis 
ivinccd, 
8af.:rt,  « 

,  havivi^ 
then  to 
r  of  the 
lames  u 
ihe  head 
Htiait  of  . 

y  Carver, 
irt  of  his 
'<of  the 
lin  a  few 
[reat  con- 
h,]  which 
jawrence, 
Vest,  that 
the  con- 
had  been 
er  of  tho 
cross  the 
eeded  up 
a  branch 
ce  of  the 
imit  of  the 
if  Mexico 
[ave  sailed 

3,  by  Jona- 
Ingiwhat  the 
IptionB  of  the 
Id  languages, 
lunt  ocoupiei 

g,  verbatim, 
|ier  made  up, 

printed  foi 
Ire,  in  misery, 


1766.J 


OKUUUN,    OH   HIVSR   CF    THE    WEST. 


143 


down  that  river,  to  the  place  where  it  is  said  to  empty  itself,  near 
the  Straits  of  Anian." 

From  these  declarations,  it  has  been  supposed,  by  many,  that 
Carver  was  the  first  to  make  known  to  the  world  the  existence  of 
the  great  stream  since  discovered,  and  named  the  Columbia,  which 
drains  nearly  the  whole  region,  on  the  Pacific  side  of  America, 
J[)etween  the  40th  and  the  54th  parallels  of  latitude ;  and  that  stream 
is,  in  consequence,  frequently  called  the  Oregon.  On  examining 
the  journal  of  the  traveller,  however,  we  find  no  further  mention 
of,  or  allusion  to,  his  rive**  than  is  contained  in  the  following  pas- 
sages: ''From  these  nations,  [called  by  him  the  Naudowetsies, 
tho  AssinipoilSf  and  the  Killistinoes,]  together  with  my  own  obser- 
vations, I  have  learned  i2)at  the  four  most  capital  rivers  on  the 
continent  of  North  America  —  viz.,  the  St.  Lawrence,  the  Missis- 
sippi, the  River  Bourbon,  and  the  Oregon,  or  River  of  the  West,  (as 
I  hinted  in  my  introduction)  —  have  their  sources  in  the  same 
neighborhood.  The  waters  of  the  three  former  are  within  thirty 
miles  of  each  other ;  the  latter,  however,  is  rather  farther  west. 
This  shows  that  these  parts  are  the  highest  in  North  America ;  and 
it  is  an  instance  not  to  be  paralleled  in  the  other  three  quarters  of 
the  world,  that  four  rivers  of  such  magnitude  should  take  their  rise 
together,  and  each,  after  running  separate  courses,  discharge  their 
waters  into  different  oceans,  at  the  distance  of  two  thousand  miles 
from  their  sources ;  for,  in  their  passage  from  this  spot  to  the  Bay 
of  St.  Lawrence  east,  to  the  Bay  of  Mexico  south,  to  Hudson's 
Bay  north,  and  to  the  bay  at  the  Straits  of  Anian  west,  each  of 
these  traverse  upwards  of  two  thousand  miles."  The  elevated  part, 
to  which  Carver  here  alludes,  is  no  otherwise  described  by  him  than 
as  being  near  the  Shining  Mountains,  "  which  begin  at  Mexico,  and, 
continuing  northward,  on  the  back,  or  to  the  east,  of  California, 
separate  the  waters  of  those  numerous  rivers  that  fall  into  the  Gulf 
of  Mexico  or  the  Gulf  of  California.  From  thence,  continuing 
their  course  still  northward,  between  the  sources  of  the  Mississippi 
and  the  rivers  that  run  into  the  South  Sea,  they  appear  to  end  in 
about  47  or  48  degrees  of  north  latitude,  where  a  number  of  rivers 
arise,  and  empty  themselves  either  into  the  South  Sea,  into  Hud- 
son's Bay,  or  into  the  waters  that  communicate  between  these 
two  seas," 

In  the  preceding  extracts  from  Carver's  book,  embracing  all  that 
he  has  said  respecting  his  Oregon,  or  Great  River  of  the  West,  there 
is  certainly  nothing  calculated  to  establish  the  identity  of  the  stream, 


,!  it  ] 


144 


MISREPBBSBirrATIONS   OF    OABTEB. 


(1766. 


a    ^<isi 


i  K  f    '■ ! 


to  which  those  vague  deacriptions  and  allusionf  apply,  with  the 
Columbia,  or  with  any  other  river.  The  Columbia  doei  not  rise 
within  a  few  leagues,  or  a  few  hundred  leagues,  of  the  waters  of 
the  Red  River,  the  St.  Lawrence,  or  the  Upp^r  Mississippi,  which 
latter  Carver  carefully  distinguishes  from  the  Missouri;  nor  does 
either  of  those  rivers,  flowing  to  the  Atlantic,  rise  near  the  great 
dividing  ridge  of  the  Shining  Mountains ;  which  ridge,  moreover, 
does  not  end  about  the  48th  degree  of  latitude,  but  continues  more 
than  a  thousand  miles  farther  north-westward.  If,  under  circum- 
stances so  diflerent,  we  consider  the  head-waters  of  the  Columbia 
to  be  the  same  described  by  Carver  as  the  head-waters  of  the 
Oregon,  we  should,  a  fortiori,  admit  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  to 
be  the  same  mouth  of  a  river  which  Aguilar  is  said  to  have  discov- 
ered in  1603. 

Carver's  descriptions  of  places,  people,  and  things,  in  the  Indian 
countries,  are  vague,  and  often  contradictory ;  and,  where  they  can 
be  understood,  they  are,  for  the  most  part,  repetitions  of  the 
accounts  of  those  or  of  other  parts  of  America,  given  by  the  old 
French  travellers  and  historians,  whose  works  he,  nevertheless,  takes 
great  pains  to  disparage,  whenever  he  mentions  them.''*  In  many  of 
those  works,  the  belief  in  the  existence  of  a  great  river,  flowing 
from  the  vicinity  of  the  head-waters  of  the  Mississippi,  westward, 
to  the  Pacific,  is  distinctly  affirmed,  as  founded  on  the  reports  of  the 
Indians;  and  on  nearly  all  maps  of  North  America,  published 
during  the  early  part  of  the  last  century,  may  be  found  one  or  more 
of  such  streams,  under  the  names  of  River  of  the  West,  River  of 

*  In  proof  that  no  injustice  is  here  done  to  Carver's  memory,  read  his  magisterial 
and  contemptuous  remarks  on  the  works  of  Hennepin,  Lahontan,  aii<]  Charlevoix,  in 
the  first  chapter  of  his  account  of  the  origin,  manners,  &-•■.,  of  the  Indians;  and 
then  compare  his  chapters  describing,  as  from  personal  observation,  the  ceremonien 
of  marriage,  burial,  hunting,  and  others,  of  the  natives  of  the  Upper  Mississippi  coun- 
tries, with  those  of  Lahontan,  showing  the  conduct  of  the  Iroquois,  of  Canada,  on 
similar  occaiions,  by  which  it  will  be  seen  that  Carver  has  simply  translated  from 
Lahontan  the  whole  of  the  accounts,  eeen  to  the  speeches  of  the  chiefs.  Carver's  chapter 
on  the  ori^-in  of  the  Indians  is  merely  an  abridgment  from  Charlevoix's  "  Disserta- 
tion" on  the  same  subject.  His  descriptions  of  the  language,  manners,  and  customs, 
of  the  inhabitants  of  the  Upper  Mississippi  i>  ^ions,  are  entirely  at  variance  with  those 
of  the  same  tribes  at  the  present  day,  as  clearly  shown  by  the  observations  of  Pike, 
Long,  and  other  persons  of  unquestionable  character,  who  have  since  visited  that  part 
of  America.  Keating,  in  his  interesting  narrative  of  Long's  expedition  in  1833, 
expresses  his  belief  that  Carver  "  ascended  the  Mississippi  to  tlie  Falls  of  St.  Anthony, 
that  he  saw  the  St.  Peter,  and  that  he  mr.y  have  entered  it ;  but,  had  he  resided  live 
months  in  the  country,  and  become  acquainted  with  the  language  of  the  people,  he 
would  not  have  applied  to  them  the  name  of  J{audoioessies,  and  omitted  to  call  them 
the  Dacota  Indians,  aa  they  style  themselvej.'' 


1770 

Agui 
ity  of 
iiarrat 
consid 
mcnti( 
pect,  i 
every  i 
have  ci 
the  nar 
and  noi 
labor  h) 
derivati 
Thf 
account 
Americs 
Lepage 
named  J 
Indian  va 
which  h( 
sun;  this 
not  to  it 
wars  amcj 
lie  learnei 
with  whic 
ships  had 
'8  related 
confirm 
nothing  al 
the  part  rt 
an  embell 
supposed 
published 
West;  am 
story. 

The  firs 

of  America 
made,  in  . 

Hudson's  1 
mation  res 

The  accon 
Abb6  le  Mascr 


[HM. 


1770.] 


MONCACHTABK  S  ACCOUNT  Or  A  GREAT  RIVER. 


145 


Uh  the 
not  riw 
iters  of 
I,  which 
or  does 
le  great 
oreover, 
les  more 
circutn- 
;;o\uinbia 
J  of  the 
umbia  to 

Q   dlBCOV' 

he  Indian 
1  they  can 
18  of  the 
>y  the  old 
iless,  takes 
n  many  of 
sr,  flowing 
westward, 
lorts  of  the 
published 
le  or  more 
L  River  of 


Aguilar,  River  Thegayo,  or  some  other,  represented  on  the  author- 
ity of  accounts  received  from  Indians,  or  of  erroneous  or  fabulous 
narratives  of  voyages  along  the  North  Pacific  coasts.  When  we 
consider  the  many  and  glaring  plagiarisms,  from  the  works  above 
mentioned,  committed  by  Carver,  we  certainly  have  a  right  to  sus- 
pect, if  not  to  conclude,  that  he  derived  from  the  same  source 
every  thing  relating  to  his  River  of  the  West,  which  he  pretends  to 
have  collected  from  the  Indians  of  the  Upper  Mississippi.  As  to 
the  name  Oregon,  or  the  authority  for  its  use,  the  traveller  is  silent ; 
and  nothing  has  been  learned  from  any  other  source,  though  much 
labor  has  been  expended  in  attempts  to  discover  its  meaning  and 
derivation :  it  was,  most  probably,  invented  by  Carver. 

Thr  .lost  distinct  and  apparently  authentic  of  these  Indian 
accounts  of  great  rivers  flowing  from  the  central  parts  of  North 
America  to  the  Pacific,  is  that  recorded  by  the  French  traveller 
Lepage  Dupratz,  as  r  .reived  from  a  native  of  the  Yazoo  country, 
named  Moncachtabe.  The  amount  of  this  statement  is  —  that  the 
Indian  ascended  the  Missouri  north-westward,  to  its  source,  beyond 
which  he  found  another  great  river,  running  towards  the  setting 
sun ;  this  latter  he  descended  to  a  considerable  distance,  though 
not  to  its  termination,  which  he  was  prevented  from  reaching  by 
wars  among  the  tribes  inhabiting  the  country  on  its  banks ;  though 
he  learned,  from  a  woman  who  had  been  made  prisoner  by  the  tribe 
with  which  he  took  part,  that  the  river  entered  a  great  water,  where 
ships  had  been  seen,  navigated  by  white  men  with  beards.  All  this 
is  related,  with  many  accompanying  circumstances,  tending  to 
confirm  the  probability  of  the  narrative;  and  thero  is,  indeed, 
nothing  about  it  which  should  induce  us  to  reject  it  as  falsej  except 
the  part  respecting  the  ships  and  white  men,  which  may  have  been 
an  embellishment  added  by  Moncachtabe."*'  The  course  of  this 
supposed  stream  is  laid  down  on  several  maps  of  North  America, 
published  about  1750,  in  which  it  is  called  the  Great  River  of  the 
West ;  and  one  of  these  maps  probably  formed  the  basis  of  Carver's 
story. 

The  first  actual  discovery  of  a  river  in  the  northernmost  section 
of  America,  not  emptying  into  the  Atlantic  or  Hudson's  Bay,  was 
made,  in  1771,  by  Mr.  Samuel  Hearne,  one  of  the  agents  of  the 
Hudson's  Bay  Company,  who  also  obtained  the  earliest  exact  infor- 
mation respecting  the  regions  west  and  north-west  of  that  bay. 

*  The  account  may  be  found  at  length  in  the  Jllimoires  sur  la  LouitiaM,  by  the 
Abb6  le  Mascrier,  published  at  Paris  in  1753,  vol.  ii.  p.  ^6, 

19  ^ 


146 


IIEAnNK  S    TRAVKL8. 


(1771. 


I776.J 


Heame  had  been  conimiMionod,  by  the  diroolori  of  the  com|Niny,  lo 
explore  thofo  rogiona,  in  order  to  dctoriniiio,  if  poHxiblc,  tlio  qiioMtioii 
a  to  the  oxiHtoiico  of  a  northern  pasuiij^o  botwucn  Hudson'H  Hay  and 
the  Pacific ;  and  alio,  more  e8pe<;inlly,  to  find  a  rich  mine  of  cop[)cr, 
which  WHM  bolioved,  from  the  accounts  of  the  Indiuns,  to  lie  on  the 
banks  of  a  river  or  strait,  ciilUyd,  in  their  language,  **  the  Far^ff 
Metal  River."  From  the  f^encral  tenor  of  thu  instructions  givun 
to  Heame,  it  is  evident  that  the  directors  wore  convinced  of  thn 
non-existence  of  Nuch  a  passage,  and  that  they  were  merely  anxious 
to  have  the  fact  demonstrated,  i!i  order  to  clear  themselves  from  tliu 
imputation  often  cast  ufMin  them,  of  endeavoring  to  obstruct  tho 
progress  of  discovery  i'l  the  regions  under  their  control. 

Agreeably  to  those  instructions,  Ilcurne  made,  between  1769  and 
1772,  three  journeys  from  Fort  Prince  of  Wales,  tho  company's 
chief  establishment  on  tho  western  shore  of  Hudson's  Bay,  near 
the  60th  degree  of  latitude,  through  the  regions  west  and  north- 
west of  thut  place,  which  ho  examined,  in  various  directions,  to  the 
distance  of  about  a  thousand  miles.  In  his  last  journey,  he  dis- 
covered the  Great  Slave  Lake,  and  other  similar  collections  of  fresh 
water,  irom  which  issued  streams  flowing  northward  and  westward ; 
and  he  traced  one  of  these  streams,  which  proved  to  be  tho  Far-off 
Metal  River,  since  called  the  Copper  Minv  River,  to  its  termination 
in  a  sea,  where  the  tides  were  observed,  and  the  relics  of  whales 
were  strowed  in  abundance  on  the  shores.  The  mouth  of  this  river 
was  calculated  rudely  by  Hearne  to  be  situated  near  the  72d  degree 
f  latitude,  and  about  '^0  degrees  of  longitude,  wedt  of  the  most 
western  known  part  of  Hudson's  Bay ;  and  he  learned  from  the 
Indians  that  the  continent  extended  much  farther  west,  and  that 
there  were  high  mountains  in  that  direction.  The  sea  into  which 
the  Copper  Mine  River  emptied  was  supposed  by  tho  traveller  to  be 
"  a  sort  of  inland  sea,  or  extensive  bay,  somewhat  like  that  of 
Hudson;"  and  he  assured  himself,  by  his  own  observations,  that 
the  territory  traversed  by  him,  between  this  sea  and  Hudson's  Bay, 
was  not  crossed  by  any  channel  connecting  the  two  waters :  whence 
it  followed,  that  no  vessel  could  sail  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific 
north  of  America,  without  proceeding  beyond  tho  mouth  of  the 
Copper  Mine  River.  Hearne  also  conceived  that  he  had  proved 
the  entire  impossibility  of  the  existence  of  any  direct  communication 
between  Hudson's  Bay  and  the  Pacific ;  in  which  he,  undoubtedly, 
05  umed  too  much,  as  the  northern  termination  of  that  bay  had  not 
then,  nor  has  it  to  this  day,  bten  discovered. 


[mi. 


1776.] 


INiTMUCTIONa    TO    COOK. 


147 


[Miny.lo 

Iky  and 
copper, 

0  on  tlic 
Far^ff 

M  Mivun 

d  of  the 


1769  and 
lompany's 
Bay,  near 
Lnd  north- 
ons,  to  the 
jy,  he  dis- 
ins  of  fresh 
westward; 
iho  Far-o§ 
:ermination 
I  of  whales 
•f  this  river 
|72d  degree 
,f  the  most 
id  from  the 
|t,  and  thai 
into  which 
iveller  to  be 
[ike  that  of 
jations,  that 
[dson's  Bay, 
irs:  whence 
the  Pacific 
juth  of  the 
had  proved 
nmunication 
indoubtedly, 
|bay  had  not 


Honrne'fl  journals  were  not  ,>uuliahed  until  1795,  though  they 
wcro  Htibmittod,  immodiatoly  uftor  his  return  from  hit  last  journey, 
to  tho  lords  commisiioners  of  the  British  Admiralty,  who  did  nOt 
fail  to  perceivo  the  importance  of  tho  information  contained  in 
thcin.  The  commissioners  agreed  with  Hearne  in  considering  the 
pmbal>ility  of  reaching  the  PaciHc  through  Hudson's  Bay  to  be 
dcfltroyed  ;  but  they  wore,  on  the  other  hand,  irxluced  to  hope  that 
till!  Ml  wly-discovcred  sea,  north  of  America,  might  be  found  to 
communicuto,  by  navigable  passages,  with  Badin's  Bay  on  the  east 
uiul  the  Pacific  on  tho  west :  and  it  was,  in  consequence,  resolved, 
tliat  ships  should  be  sent,  simultaneously,  to  explore  the  western 
side  of  Baffin's  Bay  and  the  north-castcrnmoHt  coasts  of  the  Pacific, 
in  search  of  tho  desired  channels  of  connection  with  the  Arctic 
Sea.  By  an  act  of  parliament,  passed  in  1745,  a  reward  of  twenty 
thousand  pounds  had  been  offered  for  tho  discovery  of  a  north-west 
passage,  through  Hudsoii's  Bay,  by  ships  belonging  to  his  majesty's 
subjects;  and,  in  order  further  to  stimulate  British  navigators  in 
their  exertions,  a  new  act,  in  1776,  held  out  tho  same  reward  to  the 
owners  of  any  ship  belonging  to  his  majesty's  subjects,  or  to  the 
cominnndcr,  officers,  and  crew,  of  any  vessel  belonging  to  his 
mnjcsty,  which  should  find  out,  and  sail  through,  any  passage  by  sea 
between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific  Oceans,  in  any  direction,  or 
parallel  of  the  northern  hemisphere,  to  the  northward  of  the  52d 
defftee  of  latitude. 

Soon  after  the  adoption  of  these  resolutions.  Captain  James  Cook 
returned  to  England  from  his  second  voyage  of  circumnavigation, 
in  which  he  had  completely  disproved  all  reports  of  the  existence 
of  a  habitable  continent  about  the  south  pole ;  and,  his  offer  to  con- 
duct the  proposed  expedition  to  the  North  Pacific  having  been 
accepted  by  the  government,  two  vessels  were  soon  prepared  and 
placed  under  his  command  for  that  purpose. 

In  the  instructions  delivered  to  Cook,  on  the  6th  of  Ji'';%  1776, 
he  is  directed  to  proceed,  by  way  of  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  iVew 
Zealand,  and  Otaheite,  to  the  coast  of  J^Tew  Albion,  whi<;h  he  was 
to  endeavor  to  reach,  in  the  latitude  of  45  degrees.  He  was 
"  strictly  enjoined,  on  his  way  thither,  not  to  touch  upon  any  part 
of  the  Spanish  dominions  on  the  western  continent  of  America, 
unless  driven  to  it  by  some  unavoidable  accident ;  in  which  case, 
he  was  to  stay  no  longer  than  should  be  absolutely  necessary,  and 
to  be  very  careful  not  to  give  any  umbrage  or  offence  to  any  of  the 
inhabitants  or  subjects  of  his  Catholic  majesty.     And  if,  in  his 


'ill 

\'  ■''lil 


'^m 


148 


IIVSTRCOTIONI   TO    COOK. 


[1776. 


farther  progren  northward,  he  should  find  an;,  A.bjf  '.a  of  any 
European  prince  or  state,  upon  any  part  of  the  ooast  which  he 
might  think  proper  to  visit,  he  was  not  to  disturb  them,  or  give 
them  any  just  cause  of  oflfence,  but,  on  the  contrary,  to  treat  them 
with  civility  and  friendship."  This  latter  sentence  bore  reference 
to  the  Russians ;  the  application  of  the  name  of  New  Albion  to  the 
north-west  coast  of  North  America  showed  that  the  British  govern- 
ment had  no  intention  to  resign  any  rights  to  that  region,  which 
were  supposed,  or  pretended,  to  have  been  acquired  by  Drake's 
visit,  in  1579. 

On  reaching  New  Albion,  Cook  was  "  to  put  into  the  first  con- 
venient port  to  obtain  wood,  water,  and  refreshments,  and  thence 
to  proceed  northward  along  the  coast  to  the  latitude  of  65  degrees," 
where  he  was  to  begin  his  search  for  "  such  rivers  or  inlets  as  might 
appear  to  be  of  considerable  extent,  and  pointing  towards  Hudson's 
or  Baffin's  Bays."  Should  he  find  a  passage  of  that  description, 
he  was  to  endeavor  to  sail  through  it,  with  one  cr  both  of  his  ships, 
or  with  smaller  vessels,  of  which  the  materials  were  to  be  carried 
out,  prepared  for  being  speedily  put  together ;  should  he,  however, 
be  satii^fied  that  there  is  no  such  passage  to  the  above-mentioned 
bays,  sufficient  for  the  purposes  of  navigation,  he  was  to  repair  to 
the  Russian  establishments  in  Kamtchatka,  a  id  to  explore  the  seas 
north  of  them,  "in  further  search  of  a  nokth-east  or  north-west 
passage,  from  the  Pacific  Ocean  into  the  Atlantic  or  the  North 
Sea."  The  instruction,  not  to  begin  the  examination  of  the  Amer- 
ican coast  south  of  the  65th  degree  of  latitude,  was  based  on  the 
proofs  obtained  by  Hearne,  that  the  continent  extended  much 
beyond  that  parallel ;  before  reaching  which,  indeed,  it  was  expected 
that  the  coast  would  be  found  turning  north-eastward,  in  the  direc- 
tion of  the  mouth  of  the  Copper  Mine  River. 

The  navigator  was,  likewise,  '*  with  the  consent  of  the  natives, 
to  take  possession,  in  the  name  of  the  king  of  Great  Britain,  of 
convenient  situations  in  such  countries  as  he  might  discover,  that 
had  not  been  already  discovered  or  visited  by  any  other  European 
power ;  and  to  distribute,  among  the  inhabitants,  such  things  ab  will 
remain  as  traces  of  his  having  been  there :  but,  if  he  should  find 
the  countries  so  discovered  to  be  uninhabited,  he  was  to  take  pos- 
session of  them  for  his  sovereign,  by  setting  up  proper  marks  and 
inscriptions,  as  first  discoverers  and  possessors." 

The  preceding  extracts,  from  the  instructions  given  to  Cook,  will 
suffice  to  explain  the  objects  and  views  of  the  British  government, 


1776, 

with  I 
Ocear 
able  V 
and  0 


[me. 

of  any 
t\ich  he 
or  give 
at  them 
eference 
n  to  the 

govern- 
n,  which 

Drake's 

first  con- 
id  thence 
degrees," 
}  as  might 
Hudson's 
escription, 
f  his  ships, 
be  carried 
I,  however, 
•mentioned 
o  repair  to 
re  the  seas 
north-west 
the  North 
tho  Amer- 
sed  on  the 
ided  much 
IS  expected 
the  direc- 

[the  natives, 
Britain,  of 
Iscover,  that 
|r  European 
iiings  as  will 
[should  find 
\o  take  pos- 
marks  and 

Cook,  will 
rovernment, 


1776.1 


COOK   SAILS    rOR   THE    PACiriC. 


149 


with  regard  to  the  part  of  America  bordering  upon  the  North  Pacific 
Ocean ;  which  objects  and  views  were,  in  every  respect,  conform- 
able with  justice,  with  tho  existing  treaties  between  Great  Britain 
and  other  powers,  and  with  the  principles  of  national  law  then 
generally  admitted  in  civilized  countries.  The  part  of  America  in 
question  was  known  to  Europeans  only  through  the  imperfect 
accounts  of  the  Russian  voyages,  from  which  nothing  certain  was 
learned^  except  that  islands  and  other  territories,  supposed  to  be 
extensive,  had  been  found  in  the  sea  cast  of  Kamtchatka.  Of  the 
discoveries  of  the  Spaniards,  the  most  recent  respecting  which  any 
exact  and  authentic  details  had  been  communicated,  were  those 
made  by  Vizcaino,  in  1603 :  he,  however,  had  not  advanced  so  far 
north  as  the  45th  degree  of  latitude,  where  Cook  was  to  begin  his 
observations ;  and  between  that  parallel  and  the  56th,  the  southern- 
most limit  of  the  explorations  of  the  Russians,  was  a  vast  space  of 
sea  and  land,  concerning  which  all  the  accounts,  previously  given 
to  the  world,  were  generally  regarded  as  fabulous.  Before  Cook's 
departure,  information  had  indeed  reached  England,  of  voyages, 
made  by  Spaniards,  along  the  north-west  coasts  of  America,  during 
the  two  preceding  years,'*''  and  of  colonies  established  by  them  in 
that  quarter,  which  may,  perhaps,  have  rendered  the  British 
government  more  solicitous  to  have  those  coasts  examined  by  its 
own  officers:  this  information  was,  however,  too  vague  to  have 
afforded  any  light  for  the  direction  of  Cook's  movements ;  and  it 
has  been  already  shown  that  no  more  satisfactory  accounts  of  those 
recent  Spanish  voyages  had  been  obtained  in  England  before  1780.* 
With  these  instructions,  Cook  sailed  from  Plymouth  on  the  12th 
of  July,  1776,  in  his  old  ship,  the  Resolution,  accompanied  by 
another  called  the\Discovery,  under  Captain  Charles  Clerke.  Both 
vessels  were  provided  with  every  instrument  and  other  means 
which  science  or  experience  could  suggest,  for  the  effectual  ac- 
complishment of  the  great  objects  in  view ;  and  that  the  officers 
and  crews  were  also  judiciously  selected,  the  results  conclusively 
proved.  Among  the  lieutenants  were  Gore,  (a  native  of  Virginia,) 
King,  Bligh,  and  Burney,  who  afterwards  rose  to  eminence  in  their 
profession :  of  the  inferior  members  of  the  body,  one  deserves  to 
be  named  —  John  Ledyard,  of  Connecticut,  who  thus  passed  "our 
years  of  his  irregular  and  adventurous  life  in  the  humble  capacity 
of  a  corporal  of  marines,  on  board  the  Resolution. 

•  See  page  134  of  this  Hiitoiy.  , 


~i  <k 


1 

'I 
1  1 


hi 


1  l''W 


.4  m. 


150 


COOK    REACHES    THE    AMERICAN   COAST. 


[1778. 


From  England,  Cook  passed  around  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope, 
and  through  the  Southern  Ocean,  into  the  Pacific;  and,  after 
spending  more  than  a  year  in  examinations  about  Van  Dieman's 
Land,  New  Zealand,  the  Friendly  Islands,  the  Society  Islands,  and 
other  places  in  the  same  division  of  the  great  sea,  he  bent  his  course 
towards  the  north,  in  the  beginning  of  1778.  The  first  fruit  of 
his  researches  in  the  North  Pacific,  was  tho  discovery,  on  the  18th 
of  January,  of  Atooi,  (or  Kauai,)  one  of  the  islands  of  a  group 
near  the  20th  degree  of  latitude,  to  which  he  gave  the  name  of 
Sandwich  Islands,  in  honor  of  the  first  lord  of  the  Admiralty.  This 
discovery  was  by  no  means  the  least  important  of  the  many  effectea 
by  the  great  navigator;  as  those  islands,  situated  nearly  midway 
between  America  and  Asia,  possessing  a  delightful  climate,  and  a 
fertile  soil,  ofier  invaluable  facilities  for  the  repair  and  refreshment 
of  vessels  f.aversing  the  vast  expanse  of  sea  which  there  separates 
the  two  continents,  and  will,  no  doubt,  be  made  the  basis  for  the 
exertion  of  a  powerful  influence  on  the  destinies  of  North-west 
America. 

From  the  Sandwich  Islands,  the  British  exploring  ships  took  their 
departure  for  the  north-west  coast  of  America,  in  sight  of  which 
they  arrived  on  the  7th  of  March,  1778,  near  tiie  44th  degree  of 
latitude,  about  two  hundred  miles  north  of  Cape  Mendocino.  For 
several  days  afterwards,  Cook  was  prevented  from  advancing  north- 
ward by  contrary  winds,  which  forced  him  a  hundred  miles  in 
the  opposite  course ;  but  he  was  thereby  enabled  to  see  and  par- 
tially examine  a  larger  extent  of  coast,  and  to  determine  the  longi- 
tude of  that  part  of  America,  which  had  been  left  uncertain  by  all 
previous  observations.  The  weather  at  length  permitting,  he  took 
tl  e  desired  direction,  and,  running  rapidly  northward,  at  some  dis- 
tance from  the  land,  he  was,  on  the  22d  of  the  month,  opposite  a 
projecting  point  of  the  continent,  a  little  beyond  the  48th  vi:..  k:', 
to  which  he  gave  the  name  of  Cape  Flattery,  in  token  u  '  e 
improvement  in  his  prospects. 

The  coast  south  of  Cape  Flattery,  to  the  47th  degree,  was  care- 
fully examined  by  the  English  in  search  of  the  strait  through  which 
Juan  de  Fuca  was  said  to  have  sailed  to  the  Atlantic  in  1592 ;  aiid 
as,  in  the  account  of  that  voyage,  the  entrance  of  the  strait  into  the 
Pacific  is  placed  between  the  41th  and  the  ASth  parallels,  over  which 
space  the  American  coast  was  found  to  extend  unbroken,  Cook 
did  not  hesitate  to  pronounce  that  no  such  passage  existed.  Had 
he,  however,  also  traced  the  coast  north  and  east  of  Cape  Flattery, 


1778.] 


COOK    AT    ANCHOR   IN    NOOTKA    SOUND. 


151 


\ 


he  would  have  discovered  an  arm  of  the  ocean,  seeming  to  pene- 
trate the  continent,  through  which  he  might  have  sailed  many  days, 
ere  he  could  have  been  convinced  that  the  old  Greek  pilot's  account 
was  not  true  in  all  its  most  essential  particulars.  This  arm  of  the 
ocean  was  passed  unobserved  by  the  navigators,  who,  sailing  north- 
westward, in  front  of  its  entrance,  doubled  a  projection  of  the  land, 
named,  by  them,  Point  Breakers,  from  the  violence  of  the  surf 
beating  on  it,  and  found  immediately  beyond  a  spacious  bay,  open- 
ing to  the  Pacific,  in  the  latitude  of  49J  degrees.  Into  this  bay 
they  sailed,  and  anchored  on  its  northern  side,  at  the  distance  of 
ten  miles  from  the  sea,  in  a  safe  and  commodious  harbor,  to  which 
they  gave  the  name  of  Friendly  Cove. 

The  British  vessels  remained  at  Friendly  Cove  nearly  all  the 
month  of  April,  in  the  course  of  which  they  were  completely 
refitted,  and  supplied  with  wood  and  water,  and  the  men  were 
refreshed,  in  preparation  for  the  arduous  labors  of  the  ensuing 
summer.  During  this  period,  they  were  surrounded  by  crowds  of 
natives,  who  came  thither  from  all  quarters,  by  sea  and  by  land,  to 
visit  and  trade  with  the  strangers,  "  bringing,"  says  Cook,  "  skins  of 
various  animals,  such  as  wolves,  foxes,  bears,  deer,  raccoons,  pole- 
cats, martins,  and,  in  particular,  of  the  sea  otters,  which  are  found 
at  the  islands  east  of  Kamtchatka.  Besides  the  skins  in  their  native 
shape,  they  also  brought  garments  made  of  the  bark  of  a  tree,  or 
some  plant  like  hemp;  weapons,  such  as  bows  and  arrows,  and 
spears ;  fish-hooks,  and  instruments  of  various  kinds ;  wooden 
visors  of  many  monstrous  figures ;  a  sort  of  wpoUen  stutF  or  blan- 
keting ;  bags  filled  with  red  ochre ;  pieces  of  carved  work,  beads, 
and  several  other  little  ornaments  of  thin  brass  and  iron,  shaped 
like  a  horse-shoe,  which  they  hang  at  their  noses,  and  several 
chisels,  or  pieces  of  iron  fixed  to  handles." 

"  In  trafficking  with  us,"  continues  the  navigator,  "  some  of  them 
would  betray  a  knavish  disposition,  and  carry  off  our  goods  with- 
out making  any  return ;  but,  in  general,  it  was  otherwise,  and  we 
had  abundant  reason  to  commend  the  fairness  of  their  conduct. 
However,  their  eagerness  to  possess  iron  and  brass,  and,  indeed, 
any  kind  of  metal,  was  so  great,  that  few  of  them  could  resist 
the  temptation  to  steal  it,  whenever  an  opportunity  offered.  They 
were  thieves  in  the  strictest  sense  of  the  word ;  for  they  pilfered 
nothing  from  us  but  what  they  knew  could  be  converted  to  the 
purposes  of  private  utility,  and  had  a  real  value,  according  to  their 
estimation  of  things."     Cook  also  observed  among  them  a  "  strict 


)  ■■■ 

i 


ill 


Mi!  fel 


152 


COOK  S    ACCOUNT    OF    THE    NOOTKANS. 


[1778. 


notion  of  their  having  a  right  to  the  exclusive  property  of  every 
thing  that  their  country  produces,"  which  had  been  remarked,  by 
Bodega  and  Maurelle,  in  the  natives  at  Port  Remedies,  farther 
north.  "  At  first,  they  wanted  our  people  to  pay  for  the  wood  and 
water  that  they  carried  on  board ;  and,  had  I  been  upon  the  spot 
when  these  demands  were  made,  I  should  certainly  have  complied 
with  them.  Our  workmen,  in  my  absence,  thought  differently,  for 
they  took  but  little  notice  of  such  claims ;  and  the  natives,  when 
they  found  that  we  determined  to  pay  nothing,  ceased  to  apply. 
But  they  made  a  merit  of  necessity,  and  frequently  afterward  took 
occasion  to  remind  us  that  they  had  given  us  wood  and  water  out 
of  friendship."  i    . 

With  regard  to  the  disposition  of  these  people,  the  English  com- 
mander was,  on  the  whole,  inclined  to  judge  favorably.  *'  They 
seem,"  he  says,  "  to  be  courteous,  docile,  and  good  natured,  but, 
no*  tvithstanding  the  predominant  phlegm  of  their  tempers,  quick  in 
resenting  what  they  look  upon  as  an  injury,  and,  like  most  other 
passionate  people,  as  soon  forgetting  it."  Experience  has,  how- 
ever, proved  that  Ledyard  read  their  characters  more  correctly, 
when  he  pronounced  them  "bold,  ferocious,  sly,  and  reserved; 
not  easily  moved  to  anger,  but  revengeful  in  the  extreme." 

From  the  number  of  articles  of  iron  and  brass  found  among  these 
people,  one  of  whom  had,  moreover,  two  silver  spoons,  of  Spanish 
manufacture,  hanging  around  his  neck  by  way  of  ornament  —  from 
their  manifesting  no  surprise  at  the  sight  of  his  ships,  and  not  being 
startled  by  the  reports  of  his  guns  —  and  from  the  strong  inclination 
to  trade  exhibited  by  them,  —  Cook  was,  at  first,  inclined  to  suppose 
that  the  place  had  been  visited  by  vessels  of  civilized  nations  before 
his  arrival.  He,  however,  became  convinced,  by  his  inquiries  and 
observations  during  his  stay,  that  this  was  by  no  means  probable ; 
foi  ihough,  as  he  says,  "  some  account  of  a  Spanish  voyage  to  this 
coast  in  1774  or  1775  had  reached  England  before  I  sailed,  it  was 
evident  that  iron  was  too  common  here,  was  in  too  many  hands, 
and  the  use  of  it  was  too  well  known,  for  them  to  have  had  the  first 
knowledge  of  it  so  very  lately,  or,  indeed,  at  any  earlier  period,  by 
an  accidental  supply  from  a  ship.  Doubtless,  from  the  general  use 
they  make  of  this  metal,  it  may  be  supposed  to  come  from  some 
constant  source,  by  way  of  traffic,  and  that  not  of  a  very  late  date ; 
for  they  are  as  dexterous  in  using  their  tools  as  the  longest  practice 
can  make  them.  The  most  probable  way,  therefore,  by  which  we 
can  suppose  that  they  get  their  iron,  is  by  trading  for  it  with  other 


1778.] 


COOK    SAILS    FROM   NOOTKA. 


153 


>f  every 
rked,  by 
,  farther 
cod  and 
the  spot 
complied 
ently,  for 
res,  when 
to  apply. 
^ard  took 
water  out 


'  They 
lured,  but, 
s,  quick  in 
nost  other 
has,  how- 
I  correctly, 
[  reserved; 
eme." 
mong  these 
of  Spanish 
■nt  —  from 
not  being 
inclination 
to  suppose 
lions  before 
quiries  and 
Is  probable ; 
lage  to  this 
^iled,  it  was 
lany  hands, 
lad  the  first 
period,  by 
general  use 
from  some 
late  date; 
lest  practice 
which  we 
with  other 


Indian  tribes,  who  either  have  immediate  communication  with 
European  settlements  upon  the  continent,  or  receive  it,  perhaps, 
through  several  intermediate  nations :  the  same  might  be  said  of 
the  brass  and  copper  found  amongst  them."  The  iron  and  brass, 
he  conceived,  might  have  been  brought  from  Canada,  or  Hudson's 
Bay,  and  the  silver  spoons  from  Mexico ;  and  he  imputed  the  indif- 
ference of  the  natives,  respecting  the  ships,  "  to  their  natural  indo- 
lence of  temper  and  want  of  curiosity." 

On  his  arrival  in  this  bay.  Cook  "  honored  it  with  the  name  of 
King  George's  Sound ; "  but  he  "  afterwards  found  that  it  was  called 
Nootka,  by  the  natives,"  and  it  has,  accordingly,  ever  since  been 
known  as  Nootka  Sound.  No  word  has,  however,  been  since  found 
in  the  language  of  the  people  of  this  country  more  nearly  resembling 
Nootka  than  Yuqu^tl,  the  name  applied  by  them  to  Friendly  Cove. 
The  bay  is  situated  on  the  south-west  side  of  the  large  Island  of 
Vancouver  and  Quadra,  which  was,  until  1790,  supposed  to  be  a 
part  of  the  American  continent;  and  it  communicates  with  the 
Pacific  by  two  openings,  the  southernmost  of  which,  the  only  one 
affording  a  passage  for  large  vessels,  lies  under  the  parallel  of  49 
degrees  33  minutes.  This  southern  entrance  is,  undoubtedly,  the 
Port  San  Lorenzo,  in  which  the  Spanish  navigator  Perez  lay 
with  his  ship,  the  Santiago,  on  the  10th  of  August,  1774 ;  and  from 
that  vessel,  most  probably,  were  stolen  the  two  silver  spoons  of 
Spanish  manufacture,  which  Cook  saw  at  Nootka,  in  the  possession 
of  one  of  the  natives.  The  place  possesses  many  advantages,  which 
will  render  it  important,  whenever  that  part  of  Aniorica  shall  be 
occupied,  as  it  certainly  will  be,  by  an  enterprising  pirid  industrious 
people. 

It  was  Cook's  intention,  on  leaving  Nootka  Sound,  to  proceed, 
as  speedily  as  possible,  to  the  part  of  the  coast  under  the  65th 
degree  of  latitude,  from  which  he  was  to  commence  his  search  for 
a  passage  to  the  Atlantic.  The  violence  oi  'iie  wind  prevented 
him  from  approaching  the  land  for  some  days,  and  he  thus,  to  his 
regret,  left  unseen  the  place,  near  the  53d  parallel,  "  where  geog- 
raphers had  placed  the  pretended  Strait  of  Fonte.  For  my  own 
part,"  he  continues,  "  I  gave  no  credit  to  such  vague  and  improb- 
able stories,  tliat  carry  their  own  confutation  along  with  them ; 
nevertheless,  I  was  very  desirous  of  keeping  the  American  coast 
aboard,  in  order  to  clear  up  this  point  beyond  dispute."  At  length, 
on  the  1st  of  May,  he  saw  the  land,  about  the  55th  parallel;  and, 
on  the  following  day,  he  passed  near  the  beautiful  conical  mountain, 
20 


:■'■  IK 
'■J -if 


I.  -iH 
.  i«  'ft'  • 


1  7T\ 


164 


COOK   BEGINS    HIS    SURVEY    OF    THE    COAST. 


[1778. 


under  the  57th,  which  had  received  from  Bodega,  in  1775,  the  name 
of  Mount  San  Jacinto.  This  peak  was  called  Mount  Edgecumb  by 
Cook,  who  also  gave  the  appellation  of  Bay  of  Islands  to  the  Port 
Remedios  of  the  Spaniards,  on  its  northern  side. 

After  leaving  these  places,  the  English  observed  a  wide  opening 
on  the  east,  called  by  them  Cross  Sound,  and  beyond  it  a  very  high 
mountain,  which  obtained  the  name  of  Mount  Fairweather ;  and,  as 
the  latter  was  situated  near  the  59th  parallel,  they  had  then  advance^! 
farther  north  than  the  Spaniards,  or  any  other  navigators,  had 
proceeded  from  the  south  along  that  coast,  and  were  entering  upon 
the  scenes  of  the  labors  of  the  Russians.  Accordingly,  as  they  ex- 
pected, on  the  4th  of  the  month,  they  beheld,  rising  from  the  shore 
in  the  north,  at  the  distance  of  forty  leagues,  a  stupendous  pile  of 
rocks  and  snow,  which  they  immediately  recognized  as  the  Mount 
St.  EHaSy  described  in  the  accounts  of  Bering's  voyage ;  and,  as 
the  coast  from  its  base  was  found  to  "  trend  very  much  to  the  west, 
inclining  hardly  any  thing  to  the  north,"  Cook  determined  to  com- 
mence his  survey  at  that  point,  hoping  soon  to  discover  some  strait, 
or  arm  of  the  ocean,  through  which  he  might  pass  around  the  north- 
western extremity  of  America,  into  the  sea  bathing  the  northern 
shores  of  the  continent.  Of  the  existence  of  such  a  passage  he 
was  assured  by  the  Russian  geographers,  on  whose  maps  the  whole 
space  between  Mount  St.  Elias  and  Kamtchatka  was  represented 
as  occupied  by  a  collection  of  islands  and  channels. 

With  this  expectation,  the  English  advanced  slowly  along  the 
coast,  from  the  foot  of  Mount  St.  Elias,  westward,  to  a  considerable 
distance,  and  then  south-westward,  as  far  as  the  latitude  of  54^ 
degrees ;  minutely  examining,  in  their  way,  every  sinuosity  on  the 
shores  of  the  ocean,  and  particularly  those  of  the  two  great  gulfs, 
named  by  them  Prince  Williamls  Sound  and  CooWs  River,  which 
stretch  northwardly  into  the  land  from  the  60th  paiallel.  They 
were,  however,  in  each  instance,  disappointed ;  for  the  coast  was 
found  to  extend  continuously  on  their  right,  ^ordered  every  where 
by  lofty,  snow-capped  chains  of  mountains  along  the  whole  line  thus 
surveyed:  and,  as  Cook  became  convinced  that  these  territories 
formed  part  of  the  American  continent,  which  thus  "extended 
farther  to  the  west  than,  I'rom  the  modern  most  reputable  charts,  he 
had  reason  to  expect,"  he  saw,  with  regret,  that  the  probability  of 
his  finding  a  passage  eastward  into  Baffin's  or  Hudson's  Bays  was 
materially  diminished,  if  not  entirely  destroyed.  Ko  endeavored,  in 
his  course,  to  identify  the  places  described  in  the  narrative  of 


[1778. 


1778.] 


COOK   REACHES    UNALASBVA. 


155 


e  name 
sum6  by 
the  Port 

opening 
ery  high 
;  and;  as 
idvanced 
Lors,  had 
ring  upon 
I  they  ex- 
the  shore 
us  pile  of 
the  Mount 
1 ;  and,  as 
3  the  west, 
id  to  com- 
iome  strait, 
I  the  north- 
le  northern 
passage  he 
IS  the  whole 
represented 


Bering's  voyage;  but  this  he  found,  almost  always,  impossible, 
though  he  assigned  many  of  the  names  therein  mentioned  to  spots 
which  seemed  to  correspond,  in  some  respects,  with  those  so  called 
by  ti\e  Russians. 

Whilst  this  survey  was  in  progress,  particularly  at  Prince  Wil- 
liam's Sound,  the  ships  were  freqaently  visited  by  the  iiuiives  of  the 
surrounding  country,  who  appeared  to  be  of  a  different  race  from 
those  seen  farther  south.  They  were  as  thievish  as  the  Nootkans, 
though  apparently  less  ferocious  and  revengeful ;  nnd  Cook  gives 
several  examples  of  their  extraordinary  apathy  and  indifference, 
which  appears,  from  all  subsequent  accounts,  to  be  their  most 
remarkable  characteristic.  They,  also,  were  well  acquainted  with 
the  use  of  iron  and  copper,  of  which  metals,  particularly  of  copper, 
they  possessed  knives,  or  spear-heads,  rudely  made.  Among  them 
were  likewise  found  many  ornaments  made  of  glass  beads,  which 
were  evidently  of  European  manufacture :  yet  the  English  could 
not  learn  that  they  had  ever  had  direct  intercourse  with  any  civilized 
nation;  and  Cook  very  justly  concluded  that  the  Russians  "had 
never  been  among  them,  for,  if  that  had  been  the  case,  we  should 
harclly  have  found  them  clothed  in  such  valuable  skins  as  those  of 
the  sea  otter." 

Proceeding  south-westward  from  Cook's  River,  along  the  western 
side  of  the  peninsula  of  Aliaska,  the  Enghsh,  on  the  19th  of  June, 
fell  in  with  a  group  of  small  islands,  near  the  55th  parallel,  which 
appeared  to  correspond,  in  position,  with  the  Schumagin  Islands  of 
Bering ;  and,  while  sailing  amongst  them,  they  obtained,  from  some 
natives,  a  note  written  on  paper,  in  an  unknown  language,  which 
they  supposed  to  be  Russian.  Having  reached  the  extremity  of  the 
land  in  that  direction,  they  doubled  the  poirit,  and,  sailing  again 
towards  the  east,  they  arrived,  on  the  27th,  at  a  large  island,  which 
proved  to  be  Unalashka,  one  of  the  Aleutian  Archipelago,  frequently 
mentioned  in  the  accounts  of  the  Russians  as  a  place  of  resort 
for  their  traders :  natives  of  the  island  only  were  found  there ;  but, 
as  its  position  with  reference  to  other  points  in  America,  and  to 
K?mtchatka,  was  supposed  to  be  represented  with  some  approach 
to  accuracy,  on  the  chart  published  at  St.  Petersburg,  the  Eng- 
lish, after  reaching  it,  were  better  able  to  determine  their  future 
course.  • 

Being  still  anxious  to  discover,  if  possible,  during  that  season, 
h'v  far  America  extended  to  the  north-west.  Cook  departed  from 
U    iashka  on  the  2d  of  July,  and,  sailing  northward  along  the  coast, 


.'*;!   •  ■■;1 


t  (3 


156 


COOK   MEETS    RUSSIAN   TBADEBS. 


[1778. 


he  carefully  examined  all  its  bays  and  recesses,  in  search  of  a  pas- 
sage towards  the  east,  until  he,  at  length,  on  the  9th  of  August, 
reached  a  point,  in  the  latitude  of  65  degrees  46  minutes,  which 
his  observations  induced  him  to  consider  as  the  ''north-western 
extremity  of  all  America."  This  point  he  named  Cape  Prince  of 
Wales,  and  thence  proceeding  westward,  across  a  channel  only  fifty 
miles  in  breadth,  he  arrived  at  another  point,  supposed  to  be  that 
described,  in  the  account  of  Bering's  first  voyage,  as  the  Tchukottkoi 
Noss,  which  was  ascertained  to  be  the  easternmost  spot  in  Asia,  and 
was  accordingly  named  East  Cape,  The  passage  separating  these 
capes,  which  the  Rusfiians  had  called  Bering's  Strait,  was  suflfered 
to  retain  that  appellation,  in  honor  of  the  navigator  who  first  sailed 
through  it. 

Beyond  Bering's  Strait,  the  American  coast  was  traced  by  the 
English,  north-eastward  upon  the  Arctic  Sea,  to  Icy  Cape,  in  the 
latitude  of  70  degrees  29  minutes,  where  the  progress  of  the  ex- 
plorers was  arrested  by  the  ice.  In  like  mani\cr,  the  Asiatic  coast 
was  surveyed  north-westward,  to  Cape  North,  in  the  latitude  of  68 
degrees  56  minutes,  the  farthermost  point  to  which  it  was  then  pos- 
sible to  advance  in  that  direction ;  aod,  the  warm  season  being  by 
this  time  ended,  Cook  judged  it  prudent  to  retire  to  the  south, 
deferring  the  continuation  of  his  researches  until  the  ensuing 
summer.  He  accordingly  repassed  Bering's  Strait,  and  on  the 
3d  of  October  his  ships  were  again  anchored  in  the  harbor  of  Sam- 
agoonda,  on  the  north  side  of  Unalashka. 

From  this  place,  Corporal  Ledyard  was  despatched  on  an  ex- 
ploring trip  into  the  interior  of  the  island,  where  he  at  length  dis- 
covered some  Russian  traders,  who  accompanied  him  back  to  the 
ships.  The  chief  of  these  traders,  named  Gerassim  Ismyloff,  was ' 
an  old  and  experienced  seaman,  who  had  formed  one  of  the  party 
under  Benyowsky,  in  their  adventurous  voyage  from  Kamtchatka 
to  China,  in  1770,  and  had  since  been  engaged  in  the  navigation 
and  traffic  between  Asia  and  the  Aleutian  Islands.  He  readily  ex- 
hibited i  *  Cook  the  few  charts  in  his  possession,  and  communicated 
what  he  knew  respecting  <  \e  geography  of  that  part  of  the  world 
as  well  as  was  possible,  considering  that  neither  of  the  two  under- 
stood a  word  of  the  language  of  the  other.  The  information  thus 
received  from  Ismyloff,  however,  only  served  to  show  the  entire 
inaccuracy  of  the  ideas  of  the  Russians  with  regard  to  Americii, 
and  to  convince  the  English  navigator  of  the  importance  of  his  own 
discoveries. 


1779.] 


DEATH    or   COOK. 


157 


Leaving  Unalashka  on  the  27th  of  October,  the  English  ships 
continued  their  voyage  southward  to  the  Sandwich  Islands,  of  which 
the  two  largest,  called  Otoyhee  and  Mowee,  (Hawaii  and  Mauai,) 
were  first  discovered  in  the  latter  part  of  November.  They  passed 
the  winter  on  the  western  side  of  Owyhee,  in  a  harbor  called  Kara- 
kooa  Bay ;  and  there,  on  the  16th  of  February,  1779,  the  gallant 
and  generous  Cook  was  murdered  by  the  natives,  in  an  affray.  ,  r 

Captain  Charles  Clerke,  who  succeeded  to  the  command  of  the 
expedition  after  this  melancholy  event,  endeavored,  in  the  summer 
of  1779,  to  effect  a  passage  through  the  Arctic  Sea  to  the  Atlantic. 
With  this  view,  he  left  the  Sandwich  Islands  in  March,  and,  on  the 
29th  ci'  April,  reached  the  harbor  of  Petropawlowsk,  in  the  Bay  of 
Avatscha,  the  principal  port  of  the  Russians  on  the  North  Pacific, 
where  the  English  were  received  with  th^  utmost  kindness  by  the 
officers  of  the  government;  and  their  ships  were  objects  of  the 
greatest*  curiosity  to  the  people,  being  the  first  from  any  foreign 
country  which  had  ever  visited  that  part  of  the  world.  After  some 
days  spent  in  Kamtchatka,  Clerke  sailed  for  Bering's  Strait,  beyond 
which,  however,  he  was  unable  to  advance,  in  any  direction,  so  far 
as  in  the  preceding  year,  in  consequence  of  the  great  accumulation 
of  thp  ice.  His  health  at  that  time  being,  moreover,  in  a  very  pre- 
carious state,  he  returned  to  Petropawlowsk,  near  which  he  died,  on 
the  22d  of  August. 

Lieutenant  John  Gore  next  assumed  the  direction  of  the  enter- 
prise :  but  the  ships  were  considered,  by  him  and  the  other  officers, 
unfit,  from  the  bad  condition  of  their  bottoms  and  rigging,  to  en- 
counter the  shocks  of  a'nother  season  in  that  tempestuous  quarter 
of  the  ocean ;  and  it  was,  thereupon,  determined  that  they  should 
direct  their  course  immediately  for  England.  They  accordingly 
sailed  from  Petropawlowsk  in  October,  and  in  the  beginning  of 
December  they  anchored  at  the  mouth  of  the  River  Tygris,  near 
Canton. 

With  the  stay  of  the  English  ships  in  China  are  connected  some 
circumstances,  which  gave  additional  importance  to  the  discoveries 
effected  in  their  expedition. 

It  has  already  been  mentioned  that,  during  the  voyage  along  the 
north-west  coasts  of  America,  the  otFicers  and  seamen  had  obtained 
from  the  natives  at  Nootka,  Prince  William's  Sound,  and  other 
places  which  they  visited,  a  (]uantity  of  furs,  in  exchange  for  knives, 
old  clothes,  buttons,  and  other  trifles.    The'sp  furs  wore  collected, 


': 


s  ■■•  ;■}■ 
*     '1 

^  ■•i.. 


I  ii    i':. 


158 


THE    ENGLISH    SELL   THEIR   FURS    AT    CANTON. 


[1779. 


m 


for  the  most  part,  without  any  reference  to  their  value  as  merchan- 
dise, and  were  used  on  board  ship  as  clothes  or  bedding ;  in  conse- 
quence of  which,  many  of  them  had  become  spoiled,  and  others 
were  much  injured,  before  the  ships  reached  Petropawlowsk.  At 
that  place,  a  few  skins  were  sold  to  the  Russian  traders,  who  were 
anxious  to  purchase  the  whole  on  similar  terms ;  but  the  English 
officers,  having,  in  the  mean  time,  acquired  information  as  to  the 
high  prices  paid  for  furs  in  China,  prevailed  upon  the  seamen  to 
retain  those  which  they  still  possessed,  until  xheir  arrival  at  Canton, 
where  they  were  assured  that  a  much  better  market  would  be 
found. 

The  hopes  thus  excited  cid  not  prove  fallacious.  The  ships 
commanded  by  Gore  were  the  only  ones,  wiih  the  exception  of  that 
under  Benyowsky,  in  1770,  wi:ich  had  over  arrived  at  Canton 
directly  from  the  coasts  where  furs  were  obtained ;  and  no  sooner 
was  the  nature  of  the  luerchandif^e  which  they  brought  k^own  in 
the  city,  than  all  became  eager  lo  purchase  those  precious  objects 
of  comfort  and  luxury,  either  for  their  own  use  or  upon  speculation. 
The  Chinese,  according  to  cu^Jom,  began  by  offering  prices  much 
below  the  ordinary ;  but  the  English,  being  on  their  guard,  refused 
such  terms,  and,  in  the  end,  their  whole  stock  of  furs  was  sold  for 
money  and  goods,  to  the  amount  of  more  than  ten  thousand  dollars. 
The  seamen,  on  witnessing  these  results,  became,  notwithstanding 
the  previous  length  of  their  cruise,  "  possessed  with  a  rage  to  return 
to  the  northern  coasts,  and,  by  another  cargo  of  skins,  to  make 
their  fortunes,  which  was,  at  one  time,  not  far  short  of  mutiny : " 
they  were,  however,  restrained  by  their  officers,  and,  after  the  com- 
pletion of  the  business  at  Canton,  the  ships  sailed  around  the  Cape 
of  Good  Hope  to  England,  where  they  arrived  in  the  beginning  of 
October,  1780. 

With  regard  to  the  novelty  of  the  discoveries  effected  in  this 
voyage,  it  will  be  seen,  on  comparing  the  course  of  the  English 
ships  with  those  taken  by  the  Spaniards,  in  1774  and  1775  —  that 
Cook  saw  no  part  of  the  west  coast  of  North  America,  south  of 
Mount  San  Jacinto  or  Edgecumb,  which  had  not  been  previously 
seen  by  Perez,  Bodega,  or  Heceta ;  and,  after  passing  that  point,  he 
was,  as  he  frequently  admits,  aided,  and  in  a  measure  guided,  by  the 
accounts  of  the  lussian  voyages.  The  observations  of  the  English 
were,  however,  infiijtely  more  minute,  aid  more  important,  in  their 
results,  than  those  of  any  or  all  the  othsr  navigators  who  had  pre- 


1779.] 


RESULTS    or    COOK  S    DISCOVERIES. 


159 


T-'il 


ceded  them  in  the  exploration  of  the  North  Pacific :  for,  by  deter- 
mining accurately  the  positions  of  the  principal  points  on  the  coasts 
of  '  ia  and  America,  bounding  that  sea,  they  first  afforded  the 
means  of  ascertaining  the  extent  of  those  continents,  and  the  degree 
of  their  proximity  to  each  other,  respecting  which  the  most  er- 
roneous ideas  had  prevailed ;  and  the  comparative  case  and  security 
^vith  which  they  executed  this  task,  served  to  dispel  apprehensions 
with  regard  to  expeditions  through  that  quarter  of  the  ocean. 

NOTE.  —  In  the  "  Exploration  du  Territoiro  de  I'Oregon,  dea  CalifornicB,"  &c.,  by 
M.  Duflotdo  Mofraa,  published  at  Paris,  in  the  summer  of  1844,  by  order  of  the  king, 
scd  imder  the  auiiipices  of  Marshal  Soult,  the  author  asserts  and  assumes  that  he  has 
proved  incontcstably  that  the  Columbia  River  had  been  discovered  ami  explored  com- 
pletely by  French  officers  and  traders  between  1716  and  1754,  and  that  'be  whole 
country  traversed  by  that  stream  rightfully  formn  part  of  Canada.  In  support  of  the 
latter  assertion,  he  cites  a  passage  from  L'Escarbot'u  "  Histoire  de  la  Nouvelle  France," 
published  in  1617,  claiming,  as  !New  France,  the  whole  American  continent,  and  the 
adjacent  islands  north  of  the  tropic  of  Cancer ;  and  a  passage  from  the  "  Voyage  de  la 
Nouvelle  France,"  published  in  1633  by  Champlain,  who  is  content  with  all  north  of 
the  35th  degree  of  latitude :  and,  in  further  confirmation,  he  refers  to  a  manuscript  Span- 
iih  map,  drawn  \n  Florence  in  1606,  to  a  Dutch  map,  drawn  at  Edam  in  1610,  and  to  an 
English  map,  engraved  at  London  in  1747,  all  of  which,  it  seems,  represent  Canada  aa 
extending  to  tlie  Pacific.  In  proof  that  the  French  had  explored  the  Columbia  regions, 
M.  de  Mofras  mentions  a  number  of  orders,  preserved  in  the  archives  of  the  marine  and 
colonies  at  Paris,  from  French  ministers,  and  from  governors  of  Canada,  for  the  exam- 
ination of  the  western  territories  —  one  of  which,  addressed,  in  1730,  by  the  governor, 
Beauharnois,  to  a  trader  named  Ver>  udrye,  directs  him  "  to  send  with  his  memoir 
a  map  drawn  from  his  own  observations  and  the  indications  of  the  Indians,  and,  among 
others,  of  a  Kree  chief,  embracing  the  course  of  tlie  River  of  the  West,  and  showing 
that  it  must  empty  above  California,  near  the  entrance  discovered  by  Martin  de  Agui- 
lar."  "Jfothing  can  be-  more  clear,"  adds  M.  de  Mofras;  it  will,  however,  be  ob- 
served that  the  Swedish  naturdist  Kalm,  who  visited  Canada  in  1749,  was  informed 
by  Verendrye  himself  that "  the  chief  intention  of  this  expedition,  viz.,  to  come  to 
the  South  Sea,  and  to  examine  its  distance  from  Canada,  was  not  attained." 

"In  fine,"  says  M.  de  Mofras,  (vol.  ii.  p.  254,)  "the  map  accompanying  the  Me- 
moires  des  Commissaires  du  Roi  et  de  ceux  de  sa  Majeste  Britannique  en  Amerique., 
engraved  in  1757,  demonstrates,  also,  that  New  France  extended  to  the  Pacific  Ocean. 
It  will  be  seen,  hereafter,  that  it  is  not  surprising  to  find  upon  this  map,  in  the  4oth 
degree  of  latitude,  on  the  north-west  coast  of  America,  a  great  river,  the  direction  of 
which  is  exactly  that  of  the  River  Columbia."  Now  M.  de  Mofras  could  not  have 
examined  the  map  here  cited  by  him  when  he  made  this  assertion.  The  work  con- 
taining it  is  a  collection  of  documents  presented  by  the  comn^issaries  of  Frar.oe 
and  England,  appointed,  under  the  treaty  of  Aix  la  Chapelle,  in  1748,  to  decide  cer- 
tain disputed  points  of  boundary  in  America.  The  map  of  America,  to  which  M. 
Mofras  refers,  was  drawn  and  presented  by  the  French  commissaries,  as  its  title  ex- 
pressly declares,  to  expose  the  extravagant  pretensions  of  the  British  to  territories  in 
America:  it  does  not  contaiji  the  words  "Canada,"  or  "J^ouvelle  France,"  or  any 
other  sign  of  French  dominion  ;  the  whole  division  of  the  continent,  between  the 
48th  and  the  .1st  parallels  of  latitude,  being  represented  by  strong  lines  and  express 
notes,  as  included  in  the  limits  of  the  British  provinces  :  nor  does  it  show  any  large 
river  falling  into  the  Pacific  north  of  the  peninsula  of  California,  nor  any  river  en- 
tering that  ocean  north  of  the  36th  degree  of  latitude. 


■  \ 


1^ 


I- ;  m 


lii-^^- 


160 


:■<■»: 


IWfi 


CHAPTER    VII. 


1790  TO  1789. 


CoRimereial  Reaulti  of  Cook's  Dincoverics  —  Settlementa  of  the  Ruimant  !n  America 

—  Scheme  of  Ledyard  for  the  Trade  of  the  North  Pacific  —  Voyage  of  La  P6rouse 

—  Direct  Trade  between  the  American  Coaat*  and  Canton  commenced  —  Voyagcn 
of  the  English  Fur  Trader*  —  Re-diacovcry  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca  —  Voyage  of 
Meares,  who  endeavors  to  find  a  great  River  described  by  tlio  Spaniards  —  Find 
Voyages  from  the  United  States  to  the  South  Pacific,  and  to  Canton  —  Voyogi-  of 
the  Columbia  and  VVashiagton,  under  Kendriok  and  Gray,  from  Boston  to  tliQ 
North  Pacific, 


Whilst  Cook  was  engaged  in  his  l8"t  expedition,  Great  Britain 
became  involved  in  wars  with  the  United  States  of  America,  France, 
and  Spain ;  and,  as  there  was  no  prospect  of  a  speedy  termination 
of  the  contests  at  the  time  when  the  ships  sent  out  under  that 
commander  returned  to  Europe,  the  British  government  considered 
it  nrudent  to  withhold  from  the  world  all  information  respecting 
th.ir  ^'lyage.  The  regular  journal  of  the  ships,  together  with  the 
{j.iv.'  '<■•  lotes  and  memoranda  of  the  officers  and  men  which  could 
hi!  coHrcted,  were,  in  consequence,  placed  under  the  charge  of  tiie 
Board  of  Admiralty,  and  thus  remained  concealed  until  peace  had 
been  restored.  Notwithstanding  this  care,  however,  many  of  the 
occurrences  of  the  expedition  became  known,  the  importance,  or 
the  novelty,  of  which  was  such  as  to  raise  to  the  highest  degree  the 
curiosity  of  the  public,  not  only  in  England,  but  in  all  other  civilized 
countries. 

The  wars  having  been,  at  length,  concluded,  the  regular  journals 
of  the  expedition  we.o  »  ublished  at  London,  in  the  winter  of  1784-5, 
under  the  care  of  the  learned  Bishop  Douglas,  with  a  number  of 
maps,  charts,  and  other  illustrative  engravings;  and  it  is  now 
scarcely  necessary  to  say,  that  the  anticipations  which  had  been 
formed  as  to  the  importance  of  their  contents,  were  fully  realized. 

The  information  obtained  during  the  voyage,  respecting  the 
abundance  of  animals  of  fine  fur  on  the  north-west  coasts  of 
America,  and  the  high  prices  paid  for  their  skins  in  China,  became 


1780.  j 


STATE    or    THE    TOR   TR\DB. 


lei 


generally  diflfuffed  before  the  publication  of  the  journals,  and  it  did 
tiot  fail  to  nltmct  the  attention  of  enterprising  men  in  all  maritime 
cniintri''j.  The  trade  in  fiiA  had  been  conf'ucted,  almost  wholly, 
by  the  Rritish  and  the  Russians,  l)«tween  whom,  however,  there  had 
been  no  opportunity  for  competition.  The  Russians  procured  their 
irs  chiefly  in  the  northern  parts  of  their  own  empire ;  and  they 
exported  to  China,  by  land,  all  such  as  were  not  required  for  their 
own  use.  The  British  market  was  supplied  entirely  from  Hudson's 
Bay  and  Canada ;  and  a  great  portion  of  the  skins  there  collected 
wns  sent  to  Russia,  whence  many  of  them  fnn  nd  their  way  to  China, 
thrtigh  none  had  ever  been  shipped  dir  '^r  the  latter  country. 

That  the  furs  of  Canada  and  Huds'  'ft  be  sold  advan- 

tageously at  Canton  was  certain,  from  >n  between  the 

prico'^:  of  tho.se  articles  in  London  and  ;  and  it  was  also 

dear  that  still  jj^reatei  profits  might  be  secured  by  means  of  a  direct 
trade  brtween  China  and  the  north-west  coasts  of  America,  where 
the  finest  furs  were  to  be  obtained  more  easily  than  in  any  other 
part  of  the  world.  There  could  be,  nevertheless,  no  doubt  that,  after 
the  opening  of  such  a  trade,  the  prices  in  China  would  fall,  while 
the  difficulties  and  expenses  of  collecting  the  furs  in  America  would 
be  increased  ;  and  it  was,  tht  refore,  material  that  those  who  wished 
to  reap  the  fullest  harvests  in  this  new  field,  should  begin  their 
labors  as  speedily  as  possible. 

The  Russians  were  the  first  to  avail  themselves  of  Cook's  dis- 
coveries, respecting  which  they  had  derived  much  information 
during  the  stay  of  the  British  ships  at  Petropawlowsk  and  Unalash- 
ka.  In  1781,  an  association  was  formed  betweet  Gregory  Scheli- 
kof,  Ivan  Gollikof,  and  other  principal  fur  merchants  of  Siberia  and 
Kamtchatka,  for  the  more  extensive  and  eflective  conduct  of  their 
business ;  and  three  vessels,  equipped  l)y  them  for  a  long  voyage  of 
trade  and  exploration,  sailed  from  Ochotsk,  in  August,  1783,  under 
the  command  of  Schelikof.  In  this  expedition  they  were  absent 
three  years,  in  the  course  of  which  the  shores  of  the  American 
continent  and  islands,  between  the  south-west  extremity  of  Aliaska 
and  Prince  William's  Sound,  were  examined,  and  several  colonies 
or  factories  were  established,  particularly  on  the  large  island  of 
KiiktaJc,  or  Kodiak,  near  the  entrance  of  the  bay  called  Cook's 
River.  Schelikof  was  e  man  of  great  intrepidity  and  perseverance, 
\vgI1  acquainted  with  the  business  in  which  he  was  engaged,  and 
apparently  never  troubled  by  scruples  as  to  the  morality  or  humanity 
of  any  measure,  after  he  had  satisfied  himself  of  its  expediency. 

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Photographic 

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Corporation 


23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  14580 

(716)«72.4503 


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LEDTABO  S  SCHEME  FOR  THE  FDR  TRADE. 


[1782. 


M 


fc-. -• 


He  and  his  followers  are  said  to  have  exhibited  the  most  barbaroui 
dispositions  in  their  treatment  of  the  natives  on  the  coasts,  whole 
tribes  of  whom  were  put  to  death  upon  the  slightest  prospect  of 
advantage  from  then:  destruction,  and  often  through  mere  wanton- 
ness of  cruelty. 

In  1787,  the  Russians  made  establishments,  also,  on  the  suores  of 
Cook's  River;  and,  in  the  following  year,  two  vessels  were  sent 
from  Asia  by  the  trading  association,  under  Ismylof  (one  of  the  men 
found  by  Cook  at  Unalashka)  and  Betscharef,  who  proceeded  as 
Sblt  east  as  the  bay  at  the  foot  of  Mount  St.  Elias^  called  Ydkutat 
by  the  natives,  and  Admiralty  Bay  by  the  English.  It  seems  to 
have  also  been  the  object  of  these  traders  to  take  possession  of 
Nootka  Sound,  in  which,  however,  they  were  anticipated,  as  will 
be  shown  in  the  ensuing  chapter. 

The  empress  Catharine  had  likewise  become  anxious  to  acquire 
glory  by  an  expedition  for  discoveries  in  the  North  Pacifi<^;  but,  as 
none  of  her  subjects  were  qualified  to  conduct  such  an  enterprise, 
she  engaged  for  the  purpose  Captain  Billings,  an  Englishman,  who 
had  accompanied  Cook,  as  assistant  astroncmier,  in  his  last  voyage. 
Under  his  direction,' two  ships  were  built  at  Petropawlowsk ;  but 
they  could  not  be  completed  before  1790,  when  Billings  began  his 
voyage,  as  will  be  hereafter  related. 

Among  other  nations,  the  first  attempt  to  engage  in  the  direct 
trade  between  the  north-west  coasts  of  America  and  China  appears 
to  have  been  made  by  Mr.  Bolts,  an  eminent  English  merchant, 
residing  at  Trieste,  who,  in  1781,  equipped  a  vessel  for  that  pur- 
pose, to  be  navigated  under  the  imperial  flag  of  Germany ;  but  he 
was  obliged,  from  some  unknown  cause,  to  abandon  the  under- 
taking. 

A  similar  attempt  was  shortly  after  made,  with  no  greater  8U^ 
cess,  in  the  United  States  of  America.  John  Ledyard,  who  has 
been  already  mentioned  as  one  of  the  crew  of  Cook's  ship  during 
the  last  voyage  of  that  navigator,  having  desei-ted,  or  rather  es- 
caped, from  a  British  frigate,  in  which  he  was  serving  against  his 
countrymen,  near  New  York,  in  1782,  prevailed  on  the  celebrated 
merchant  and  financier,  Robert  Morris,  of  Philadelphia,  to  fit  out  a 
vesscll,  to  be  employed,  under  his  direction,  in  the  fur  trade  of  the 
North  Pacific.  The  pecuniary  embarrassments  of  Mr.  Morris, 
however,  obliged  him  to  abandon  the  enterprise  before  thi  vessel 
was  ready  for  sea;  and  Ledyard,  finding  his  efforts  to  procure 
cooperation  for  that  object  unavailing  in  America,  went  to  France  in 


1786.] 

1784, V 

the  gov 

The: 

cuting  t 

kingdon 

France,' 

be  deriv 

tor,  La 

was  spe( 

coasts  of 

which  th 

mation  n 

unknown 

communi 

The  n 
which  La 
his  voyag 
to  the  nc 
one  third 
near  whic 


were  mad 
traded  wi^ 
&c.,  minu 

*  After  th 

Jefferson,  thi 

by  land  to  K 

vnt  coaat  a 

atates  of  the 

agency  of  th 

topaasthroui 

■nent  of  tha 

Ochotsk,  wh( 

•nested,  by  o 

ma  thence  c 

injunction  no 

"ion  are  unki 

members  of 

wished  to  kee 

ywd'g  irreguli 

the  Africui  A 

-Seethe  Bi< 

'  King  Lou 

and  to  have  di 

lie  communioa 

I  No  aeooui 


1786.] 


TOTAOS    or   LA   P^BOUCnE. 


168 


1784,  where  he,  in  concert  with  Paul  Jones,  endeavored  to  interest 
the  government,  or  private  capitalists,  in  his  scheme. 

The  French  gave  no  encourtigement  to  Ledyard's  plan  for  pros^ 
cuting  the  fur  trade ;  and  no  private  vessels  were  sent  from  that 
kingdom  to  the  North  Pacific  until  1791.*  The  government  of 
France,'  however,  was  not  unaware  of  the  advantages  which  might 
be  derived  from  this  branch  of  commerce ;  and  their  great  naviga- 
tor, La  Pirouse,  on  leaving  his  country  for  the  Paci^c,  in  1785, 
was  specially  instructed  to  "explore  the  parts  of  the  north-west 
coasts  of  America  which  had  not  been  examined  by  Cook,  and  of 
which  the  Russian  accounts  gave  nc  idea,  in  order  to  obtain  infor- 
mation respecting  the  fur  trade,  and  also  to  learn  whether,  in  those 
unknown  parts,  some  river  or  Internal  sea  mig^t  not  be  found 
communicating  with  Hudson's  Bay  or  Baffin's  Bay."t 

The  multiplicity  of  objects,  in  every  department  of  science,  to 
which  La  P^rouse  was  required  by  his  instructions  to  attend,  during 
his  voyage,  prevented  him  from  devoting  more  than  three  months 
to  the  north-west  coasts  of  America ;  and,  of  that  time,  he  spent 
one  third  at  anchor,  in  a  bay  at  the  foot  of  Mount  Fairweather, 
near  which  he  first,  saw  the  coast,  on  the  23d  of  June,  1786.  In 
this  bay,  called,  by  La  P^rouse,  Port  det  Franfau,X  observations 
were  made  by  the  French  in  various  points  of  science ;  and  they 
traded  with  the  natives,  of  wliose  persoiis,  language;  arts,  customs, 
&c.,  minute  accounts  are  presented  in  the  journals  of  the  expedi- 

*  After  the  fulure  of  this  Msheme,  Ledyud  undertook,  at  the  soggestion  of  Mr. 
Jefferson,  then  minUter  plenipotentiary  of  the  United  Stateo  in  France,  to  proceed 
by  land  to  Kamtohatka,  thence  by  sea  to  Nootka  Sound,  or  uome  other  point  on  the 
west  cout  of  North  America,  and  thence  across  the  continent,  to  the  Atlantic 
atates  of  the  Federal  Union.  With  this  view,  permission  was  obtained,  through  the 
agency  of  the  celebrated  Baron  de  Grimm,  from  the  empress  of  Russia,  for  Ledyard 
to  pass  through  her  dominions ;  and,  thus  protected,  as  well  as  uded,  by  the  govern- 
ment of  that  empire,  he  advanced  as  far  as  Irkutsk,  in  Siberia,  on  his  way  to 
Ochotsk,  where  he  proposed  to  embark  for  America.  At  Irkutsk,  however,  be  was 
arrested,  by  order  of  the  empress,  on  the  night  of  the  24th  of  February,  17S8,  and 
was  thence  conveyed  to  the  frontiers  of  Poland,  where  he  was  liberated,  wiUi  an 
injonction  not  again  to  set  foot  in  the  Russian  territory.  The  reasons  for  his  expul- 
■ion  are  unknown;  but  it  was  probably  occasioned  by  the  representations  of  the 
members  of  the  Russian  American  iSrading  Company,  already  mentioned,  who 
wished  to  keep  their  proceedings  secret.  On  the  15th  of  November  following,  Led- 
yard's irregular  life  was  ended  at  Cairo,  whither  he  had  gone  under  the  ausptees  of 
the  AiUcan  Association  of  London,  on  his  way  to  seek  for  the  sources  of  tlie  Nile. 
—  See  the  Biography  of  Ledyard,  by  Jared  Sparks. 

t  King  Louis  XVI.  is  said  to  have  planned  the  expedition  qf  La  P^ronse  Himself, 
ud  to  have  drawn  up  the  greater  part  of  the  instructions  with  his  own  hand,  before 
he  communicated  his  intentions  to  any  other  person. 

t  No  account  of  this  extraordinary  place  has  been  given  by  any  other  navigator. 


fl. 


i: 


p.\ 


164 


VOYAGE    OF    LA    PEBOUSE. 


[1786. 


tion.  Quitting  the  Port  des  Fran^ais  on  the  4th  of  August,  they 
sailed  towards  the  south,  and  examined  the  coasts  between  Mount 
San  Jacinto,  or  Edgecumb,  and  Port  Bucareli,  as  well  as  those 
discovered  by  the  Spaniards  in  1774  and  1775,  between  the  54th 
and  the  52d  parallels,  forming  the  western  side  of  Queen  Char- 
lotte's Island,  the  separation  of  which  from  the  American  continent 
seems  to  have  been  suspected  by  La  Picouse.  Continuing  onwards, 
they  passed  the  mouth  of  Nootka  Sound  without  entering  it,  and, 
on  the  8th  of  September,  they  reached  Monterey,  where  they  were 
received  with  the  greatest  attention,  agreeably  to  orders  previously 
sent  thither  from  Mexico.  At  Monterey,  the  observations  were 
renewed,  and  the  latitude  and  longitude  of  that  part  of  the  coast 
were,  for  the  first  time,  accurately  determined ;  after  which,  on  the 
24th  of  the  month,  the  French  ships  quitted  the  American  coast 
forever. 

The  remarks  and  surmises  of  this  accomplished  officer,  on  several 
points  connected  with  the  north-west  coasts '  of  America,  display 
much  sagacity  and  science;  but  his  labors  were  rendered  almost 
useless  to  the  world,  by  the  delay  in  the  publication  of  his  joumab, 
which  did  not  appear  until  1797,  when  nearly  all  the  places  visited 
by  him  had  become  well  known,  from  the  descriptions  of  many 
other  navigators.* 

The  first  persons  who  actually  engaged  in  the  direct  trade 
between  the  north-west  coasts  of  America  and  China,  were  British 
subjects,  though  sailing,  nearly  all,  under  the  Portuguese  flag. 

At  the  time  of  the  publication  of  Cook's  journals,  the  British 
trade  in  the  Pacific  was  divided  between  tw  ^reat  commercial 
corporations,  each  possessing  peculiar  privile^^  ecured  to  itself 
by  act  of  parliament,  to  the  exclusion  of  all  other  subjects  of  the 
same  nation.  Thus  no  British  subjects,  except  those  in  the  ser- 
vice, or  bearing  the  license,  of  the  iS<i  dth  Sea  Company,  could  make 

*  Sailing  from  Monterey,  La  F6rouse  Tisitcd,  in  succession,  Macao,  the  Philippine 
Islands,  the  coast  of  Tartary,  Kamtchatlia,  the  Navigators'  Islands,  and  New  Hol- 
land. After  leaving  the  latter  country,  in  February,  1787,  nothing  was  heard  of  his 
ships  until  1826,  when  information  was  received  by  the  French  government,  in  con- 
sequence of  which  a  vessel  was  sent  to  the  Pacific,  and  the  wrecks  of  both  vessels 
were  discovered  on  the  little  island  of  Malicolo,  one  of  the  New  Hebrides  Archipel- 
ago, east  of  New  Holland.  From  the  accounts  of  the  natives,  it  appeared  that  a 
number  of  the  French  landed  on  the  island  after  the  wrecli  of  their  ships,  and  built 
a  small  vessel,  in  which  they  took  their  departure,  and  were  doubtless  lost.  The 
journals  of  the  expedition,  and  letters  received  from  the  commander  and  other 
officers,  were  published  at  Paris  in  1797,  under  the  direction  of  Clairet  de  Fleurieu, 
and  were  immediately  translated  into  English  and  other  European  languages. 


1785.] 


VOTAOE    or    HANNA. 


166 


expeditions,  for  trade  or  fishery,  by  way  of  Cape  Horn  or  Magel- 
lan's Straits,  to  any  part  of  the  west  coast  of  America,  or  the  seas 
and  islands  within  three  hundred  leagues  of  it :  while  no  British 
subjects,  not  employed  or  licensed  by  the  East  India  Company, 
could  proceed,  for  either  of  those  purposes,  around  the  Cape  of 
Good  Hope,  to  any  seas  or  lands  east  of  that  point,  between  it 
and  Magellan's  Straits ;  with  the  provision,  however,  that  the  privi- 
leges conferred  on  the  East  India  Company  should  not  be  considered 
as  interfering  with  those  previously  granted  to  the  other  association. 
All  British  vessels,  found  trading  or  fishing  contrary  to  the  acts  by 
which  these  privileges  were  conferred,  became  liable  to  confiscation, 
and  the  persons  directing  such  expeditions  to  heavy  penalties. 

Thus  the  East  India  Company  could  carry  on  the  direct  trade 
between  the  north-west  coasts  of  America  and  China,  at  the  risk  of 
a  dispute  with  the  South  Sea  Company,  as  to  the  extent  of  the 
interference  with  the  privileges  of  the  latter ;  while  those  privileges 
were  rendered  entirely  useless  to  the  South  Sea  Company,  for  the 
purposes  of  that  trade,  by  the  exclusion  of  its  vessels  from  the 
Chinese  ports,  which  offered  the  principal,  if  not  the  only,  profitable 
market  for  furs.  Accordingly,  some  of  the  earliest  commercial 
expeditions  of  the  British  to  the  north-west  coasts  were  made  under 
the  flag  of  the  East  India  Company ;  while  other  subjects  of  that 
nation  eluded  the  regulations  of  both  companies,  by  enga^ng  in 
the  fur  trade,  under  the  flag  rf  Portugal,  or  with  Ucenses  granted 
by  the  Portuguese  authorities  at  Macao,  near  Canton. 

The  earliest  of  these  expeditions  appears  to  have  been  that  of 
James  Hanna,  an  Englishman,  who  sailed  from  Macao,  in  a  small 
vessel  under  Portuguese  colors,  in  April,  1785,'"'  and  arrived  at 
Nootka  Sound  in  August  following.  The  natives  of  that  country 
at  first  refused  to  have  any  dealings  with  him,  and  endeavored  to 
seize  his  vessel,  and  murder  his  crew ;  but  they  were  foiled  in  the 
attempt,  and,  after  some  combats  between  the  parties,  a  trade  was 
established,  the  result  of  which  was,  that  Hanna  brought  back  to 

*  The  following  account  of  the  movements  of  the  fur  traders  in  the  North  Pacific, 
between  1785  and  1789,  is  deritred  principally  from  the  Narrative  of  the  Voyage 
of  the  Ship  Queen  Charlotte,  by  her  captain,  John  Dixon,  or  rather  by  her  super- 
cargo, Beresford  —  the  Narrative  of  the  Voyage  of  the  Ship  King  Greorge,  by  her 
captain,  Nathaniel  Fortlock  —  the  Narrative  of  the  Voyages  of  Captain  John  Meares, 
to  which  is  prefixed  a  Dissertation  on  the  Probability  of  a  Northern 'Passage  between 
the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific,  and  the  memorial  and  documents  in  proof,  presented 
by  Captain  Meares  to  the  British  parliament  in  May,  1790.  Many  notable  differences 
will  be  shown  to  exist  between  the  statements  of  Meares  in  lus  narrative  and  hi* 


4^1 


166 


TOYAOES   or    PETERS,    LOWRIE,    AND   MEARES. 


[1786. 


Mm 


\i  ■ 


Wf 


China,  before  the  end  of  the  year,  furs  worth  more  than  twenty 
thousand  dollars,  in « return  for  the  old  clothes,  iron,  and  trifles, 
which  he  had  carried  out  in  ihe  spring. 

In  1786,  Hanna  made  another  voyage  to  the  coasts ;  but  he  had 
then  to  compete  with  traders  from  Bengal  and  England,  in  conse- 
quence of  which  his  profits  were  much  less  than  in  the  preceding 
voyage.  In  the  same  year,  also,  an  attempt  was  made  to  establish 
a  direct  trade  between  Macao  and  Kamtchatka,  to  be  carried  on 
under  the  Portuguese  flag.  With  this  view,  Captain  Peters  was 
sent  in  the  brig  Lark  to  Petropawlowsk,  where  he  made  arrange- 
ments with  Schelikof,  the  head  of  the  American  Trading  Company, 
to  supply  them  regularly  with  European  and  Chinese  goods,  taking 
furs  in  return ;  but  the  Lark  was  lost,  with  nearly  all  on  board,  on 
Copper  Island,  one  of  the  westernmost  of  the  Aleutian  Archipelago, 
in  her  voyage  back  to  China,  and  no  attempt  for  the  same  purpose 
was  afterwards  made. 

Voyages  were,  about  the  same  time,  made  to  the  North  Pacific, 
in  search  of  furs,  by  Captains  Lowrie  and  Guise,  in  two  small 
vessels  from  Bombay,  and  by  Captains  Meares  and  Tipping,  in  twc 
others  from  Calcutta,  all  under  the  flag  of  the  East  India  Company. 
Lowrie  and  Guise  went  to  Nootka  Sound,  and  thence  northward, 
along  the  coasts,  to  Prince  William's  Sound,  from  which  they  pro- 
ceeded to  Macao.  Meares  and  Tipping  sailed  to  the  Aleutian 
Islands,  and  thence  to  Prince  William's  Sound,  after  leaving  which 
nothing  was  ever  heard  of  Tipping  or  his  vessel :  Meares  spent  the 
winter  of  1786-7  in  that  sound,  where  more  than  half  of  his 
crew  died  from  want  or  scurvy. 

In  the  above-mentioned  voyages,  nothing  of  importance  was 
learned  respecting  the  geography  of  North-west  America.  In  order 
to  convey  a  clear  idea  of  the  extent  and  value  of  the  discoveries 
effected  by  the  fur  traders  in  the  three  years  next  ensuing,  it  should 
be  premised  that,  in  the  beginning  of  that  period,  the  co{?sl  of  the 
American  continent  was  supposed,  according  to  the  best  accounts 
and  charts,  to  run  in  a  regular,  and  almost  unbroken,  line  north- 
westward, from  Cape  Mendocino,  near  the  40th  degree  of  latitude, 
to  Mount  St.  Elias,  near  the  60ih ;  the  innumerable  islands  which 
are  now  known  to  extend  in  chains  between  the  continent  and  the 
open  Pacific  Ocean,  from  the  48th  degree  to  the  58th,  being 
regarded  as  the  main  land  of  North  America.  The  western  sides 
of  the  most  western  of  these  islands  had  been  examined,  though 
imperfectly,  in  their  whole  length,  by  the  Spaniards,  in  1774  and 


1787.. 


MA^CINNA,    KINO    Or    NOOTKA. 


167 


1775:  Cook  had,  in  1778,  seen  the  portions  about  Nootka  Sound 
and  Mount  San  Jacinto,  or  Edgecumb,  leaving  unexplored  the  inter- 
mediate shores,  which  were  represented — as  expressed  on  the  charts 
attached  to  his  journal — according  to  the  accounts  of  the  Spanish 
navigators;  and  those  coasts  had  also  been  seen  by  La  P^rouse, 
who  seems  to  have  been  the  first  to  suspect  their  separation  from 
the  continent,  though  he  took  no  measures  \o  ascertain  the  fact,  by 
penetrating  any  of  the  numerous  openings  which  he  observed  when 
passing  them  in  1786.  The  coasts  south  of  Nootka  Sound,  to 
Cape  Mendocino,  were  not  visited  by  the  people  of  any  civilized 
nation  between  the  period  of  Cook's  voyage  and  1787 ;  and  the 
best  charts  of  them  were  those  of  the  Spaniards,  founded  on  the 
observations  of  Heceta  and  Bodega.  The  parts  respecting  which 
the  most  accurate  information  had  been  obtained  were  those  west- 
ward from  Mount  St.  Elias,  to  the  Aleutian  Islands :  that  division 
of  the  coast  was,  indeed,  so  thoroughly  examined  by  Cook,  in  1778, 
that  very  little  was  left  for  subsequent  navigators,  except  to  verify 
his  statements  and  conclusions. 

The  principal  places  of  resort  for  the  fur  traders  on  the  American 
coasts  were,  Nootka  or  King  George's  Sound,  —  Norfolk  Sound,  the 
Port  Guadelupe  of  the  Spaniards,  near  their  Mount  San  Jacinto,  — 
Prince  William's  Sound,  and  Cook's  River.  The  two  last-mentioned 
places,  having  been,  in  1788,  occupied  by  the  Russians,  under 
Schelikof,  were  seldom  visited  afterwards  by  the  vessels  of  other 
nations  ;  and,  as  the  country  about  Nootka  was  well  supplied  with 
wood  fit  for  ship-building,  and  had  a  more  agreeable  climate  than 
could  be  found  farther  north,  it  was  generally  selected  as  the  point 
of  destination,  rendezvous,  and  departure,  by  the  traders.  The 
people  there,  as  alrerdy  mentioned,  exhibited,  at  first,  great  6ppo- 
sition  to  the  foreigners ;  but  they  soon  acquired  a  taste  for  knives, 
blankets,  and  other  such  articles  of  luxury  or  use,  to  gratify  which 
they  were  ready  not  only  to  traffic,  but  even  to  engage  in  labor  with 
some  show  of  assiduity.  Thei>  king  was  named  Maquinna:  his 
relations,  Wicanish  and  Tatoochseatticus,  ruled  over  the  tribes 
farther  south-westward,  inhabiting  the  shores  of  two  large  bays, 
called  Clyoquot  and  Nittinat.  Maquinna,  whose  name  \yill  fre- 
quently appear  in  the  following  pages,  possessed  in  a  high  degree 
the  cunning,  ferocity,  and  vindictiveness,  characteristic  of  his  race ; 
for,  though  he  occasionally  exhibited  evidences  of  better  qualities, 
yet,  like  the  other  chiefs,  he  seldom  lost  an  opportunity  for  the 


hi 


i    // 


168 


TAMAHAMAHA,    KINO    OF    OWTHEE. 


[1787. 


commission  of  an  act  of  blood  or  perfidy,  in  gratification  of  his 
desires  for  revenge  or  profit. 

The  importance  of  the  Sandwich  Islands  to  the  commerce  of  the 
whole  North  Pacific  was  also  soon  made  apparent ;  and  they 
became,  in  a  few  years,  the  favorite  places  of  refreshment  of  all 
vessels  navigating  between  Cape  Horn  and  the  north-west  coasts 
of  America,  and  between  those  coasts  and  China.  Their  soil  is 
fertile,  their  climate  delightful,  and  their  productions  are  precisely 
those  most  useful  to  vessels  engaged  in  long  voyages.  Their 
inhabitants,  though  naturally  indolent,  false,  and  treacherous,  are 
not  positively  ferocious ;  and  they  are  endowed  with  much  cunning 
and  mechanical  aptitude,  "which  led  them  quickly  to  perceive  the 
immediate  benefits  to  be  derived  from  an  intercourse  with  strangers, 
and  to  submit  to  restraints,  in  order  to  secure  such  advantages.  At 
the  time  of  their  discovery,  the  islands  were  governed  by  separate 
chiefs :  in  the  course  of  the  ensuing  fifteen  years,  however,  they  all 
fell  under  the  authority  of  one  man,  Mahe-Mahe,  or  Tamahamaha, 
who,  by  the  possession  of  extraordinary  acuteness  and  sagacity, 
combined  with  courage  and  steadiness  of  purpose,  overcame  all 
his  rivals,  and  kept  up  something  like  a  regular  government  until 
his  death.  The  most  formidable  opponent  of  Tamahamaha  was 
Tianna,  a  resolute  and  ferocious  chief,  who  accompanied  Meares  to 
Canton  in  1787,  and  there  acquired  many  new  ideas,  which  gave 
him,  for  some  time,  considerable  advantages ;  but  he  was,  in  the 
end,  defeated  and  slain  by  his  rival. 

The  first  discoveries,  worthy  of  note,  made  on  the  north-west 
coasts  of  America,  after  Cook's  voyage,  were  those  of  Captains 
Portlock  and  Dixon,  who  were  sent  from  London,  in  1785,  in  com- 
mand of  the  ships  King  George  and  Queen  Charlotte,  by  a 
mercantile  association,  styled  the  King  George's  Sound  Company. 
Ihe  object  of  this  association  was  to  monopolize  the  direct  trade 
between  the  North  Pacific  coasts  and  China,  with  which  view  its 
operations  were  to  be  conducted  in  the  following  manner :  —  Under 
the  protection  of  licenses,  granted  by  the  South  Sea  Company,  its 
vessels  were  to  proceed,  by  way  of  Cape  Horn,  to'  the  north-west 
coasts  of  America,  laden  wi»h  goods,  which  were  there  to  be  bar- 
tered for  furs ;  the  furs  were  to  be  carried  to  Canton,  and  there 
sold  by  the  agents  of  the  East  India  Company,  agreeably  to  a  con- 
tract with  that  body;  and  the  produce  of  their  sale  was  to  be 
vested  in  teas,  and  other  Chinese  commodities,  which  were  to  be 


r,:\ 


1787.] 


TOTAQEB  or  PORTLOOK  AND  DIXON. 


m 


brought  by  the  ships,  around  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  to  England. 
Portlock  and  Dixon  were  both  intelligent  men,  well  acquainted  with 
the  theory  and  practice  of  navigation,  and  their  ships  were  well 
provided  with  instruments  for  ascertaining  geographical  positions ; 
the  narratives  published  by  them,  after  their  return  to  England, 
though  Ledious  to  the  general  reader,  from  the  minuteness  of  the 
details  of  trifling  or  personal  matters,  and  not  always  strictly  true, 
are,  nevertheless,  valuable,  as  showing  the  history  of  the  fur  trade 
in  the  North  Pacific,  and  of  the  discovery  of  the  American  coasts 
of  that  ocean,  between  the  time  of  Cook's  expedition  and  the  year 
1788. 

Portlock  and  Dixon  left  England  together  in  August,  1785,  and, 
passing  around  Cape  Horn,  and  through  the  group  of  the  Suidwich 
Islands,  they  reached  Cook's  River  in  July,  1786.  There  they  met 
some  Russians,  though  no  establishment  had  been  then  formed  by 
that  nation  east  of  the  Island  of  Kodiak ;  and,  after  a  short  stay, 
they  proceeded  to  Nootka  Sound,  where  they  expected  to  spend 
the  winter.  They  were,  however,  unable  to  enter  that  bay,  or  any 
other  place  on  the  American  coast,  in  consequence  of  the  violence 
of  the  winds,  and  were  obliged  to  return  to  the  Sandwich  Islands, 
where  they  remained,  very  uncomfortably,  until  the  spring  of  1787 : 
they  then  again  went  to  the  coasts  about  Cook's  River  and  Prince 
William's  Sound,  in  the  latter  of  which  places  they  found  Captain 
Meares,  with  his  vessel  frozen  up,  more  than  half  of  his  crew  dead, 
and  the  remainder  suffering  dreadfully  from  scurvy,  as  already  men- 
tioned. The  manner  in  which  Meares  Was  treated  by  his  country- 
men on  this  occasion,  has  been  represented  by  him,  in  the  narrative 
of  his  voyages,  in  a  manner  very  different  from  that  in  which  M 
appears  on  the  pages  of  Portlock  and  Dixon ;  the  latter  asserti.^ 
that  they  rendered  him  every  assistance  in  their  power,  while  he, 
on  the  other  hand,  declares  that  their  conduct  towards  him  was 
selfish  and  inhuman  in  the  extreme. 

At  Prince  William's  Sound  Dixon  left  Portlock,  and  proceeded 
along  the  coast,  eastward,  to  the  inlet  on  the  south  side  of  Mount 
San  Jacinto,  or  Edgecumb,  called  Port  Remedioa  by  Bodega,  but  to 
which  he  thought  proper  to  give  the  name  of  Norfolk  Sound.  He 
"  had,  indeed,  heard  that  the  Spaniards  anchored  very  near  this 
place  in  1775 ; "  but  this  account,  "  he  was  afnud,  was  not  absolutely 
to  be  depended  on,"  although  Maurelle's  journal,  containing  accu- 
rate descriptions  of  that  part  of  the  coast,  had  been  published  in 
English,  at  London,  in  1781.  In  like  manner,  Dixon  cUumed  the 
22 


I  1,1' 


II 


m 


Am 


170 


▼OYAOEB    or    DUNCAN    AND   COLNETT. 


[1787. 


discovery  of  the  land  farther  south,  between  the  54th  and  the  52d 
degrees  of  latitude,  on  the  ground  that  it  had  not  been  seen  by 
Cook,  though  it  is  specially  marked  on  the  chart  of  that  navigator, 
as  found  by  the  Spaniards  in  1775 ;  and,  having  become  convinced, 
from  the  reports  of  the  natives,  that  this  land  was  separated  from 
the  American  continent  by  water,  he  bestowed  on  it  the  name  of 
Queen  Charhtte't  Lland,  and  on  the  passage  immediately  north  of 
it,  that  of  DixmCn  Entrance.  From  this  part  of  the  coast  Dixon 
proceeded  to  Nootka,  and  thence,  by  the  Sandwich  Islands,  to 
Canton,  where  he  rejoined  Portlock,  who  had  passed  the  whole  of 
the  trading  season  on  the  coast,  between  Prince  William's  Sound 
and  Mount  St.  Elias. 

In  China,  Portlock  and  Dixon  found  the  price  of  furs  much 
reduced,  from  the  great  quantities  of  those  articles  which  had 
entered  the  country  during  the  season ;  so  great,  indeed,  was  the 
fall  in  their  value,  that,  according  to  La  P^rouse,  they  were  hi^er 
at  Petropawlowsk  than  at  Canton  during  the  whole  of  1787.  From 
this  circumstance,  and  also  from  the  alleged  unfairness  of  the  East 
India  Company's  agents  towards  them,  in  the  sale  of  their  cargoes, 
the  profits  of  the  voyage  of  the  King  George  and  the  Queen 
Charlotte,  from  the  teas  and  silks  which  they  carried  to  England, 
were  not  sufficient  to  cover  the  expenses  of  their  expedition. 

Before  Portlock  and  Dixon  quitted  the  north-west  coasts  of 
America,  in  1787,  they  met  two  other  vessels,  the  Princess  Royal, 
commanded  by  Captain  Duncan,  and  the  Prince  of  Wales,  under 
Captain  Colnett,  which  had  been  also  sent,  by  the  King  George's 
Sound  Company,  to  prosecute  the  fur  trade  in  the  North  Pacific. 
Duncan,  in  the  following  year,  ascertained  the  separation  o^  Queen 
Charlotte's  Island  from  the  main  land,  which  had  been  assumed  by 
Dixon,  and,  before  him,  by  La  P^rouse ;  he  also  explored  the  sea 
between  that  island  and  the  continent,  in  which  he  discovered  a 
group  of  small  islands,  named  by  him  the  Princess  RoyaVs  Archi- 
pelago ;  and  thence  he  ran  down  the  coast,  by  Nootka  Sound  and 
Cape  Flattery,  to  the  47th  degree  of  latitude,  from  which  he  took 
his  departure  for  the  Sandwich  Islands  and  China. 

The  discovery  of  these  islands,  and  of  numerous  openings  in  the 
coast,  which  appeared  to  be  the  mouths  of  channels,  Trom  that  part 
of  the  Pacific,  extending  far  eastward  into  the  land,  led  to  the 
suspicion  that  the  whole  north-western  division  of  America  might  be 
a  vast  collection  of  islands ;  and  the  old  story  of  .Admiral  Font^'s 
voyage  began  to  gain  credit.    The  islands  and  reputed  islands  in 


1787.] 


BBDIBOOTBRT   Or   THE    STAAIT   OF   FUOA. 


171 


queition  were  luppoaed  to  be  the  Archtpelago  of  Si.  Laxanu^ 
through  which  the  admiral  was  said  to  have  sailed  two  hundred  and 
lixty  leagues  before  reaching  the  continent ;  and  the  conunanddrs 
of  exploring  vessels,  sent  from  Europe  and  America  to  the  North 
Pacific,  for  some  years  after,  were  generally  directed  to  seek,  near 
the  53d  parallel,  for  the  mouth  of  the  river  which  he  was  reported 
to  have  ascended,  into  a  lake  communicating  with  the  Atlantic. 

The  name  of  the  old  Greek  pilot,  Juan  de  Fuca,  was  also,  about 
the  same  time,  rescued  from  oblivion,  by  the  discovery,  or  redis- 
covery, of  a  "  broad  arm  of  the  sea,"  stretching  eastwardly  from 
the  Pacific,  almost  exactly  in  the  position  of  the  southern  entrance 
of  the  strait,  through  which  he  declared  that  he  had  sailed  from 
the  Pacific  to  the  Atlantic  in  1592.  This  discovery  was  effected  in 
1787  by  Captain  Berkeley,  an  Englishman  commanding  a  ship  called 
the  Imperial  Eagle,  which  had  sailed  from  Ostend  in  the  preceding 
year,  under  the  flag  of  the  Austrian  East  India  Company.  The 
passage  thus  found  was  situated  immediately  north  of  Cape  Flattery, 
to  the  coast  south  of  which  point  Cook  had  confined  his  search  for 
it  in  1778 ;  and  it  opened  to  the  ocean  between  the  48th  and  49th 
parallels,  instead  of  between  the  47th  and  48th,  as  stated  in  the 
account  of  the  voyage  of  Fuca.  Berkeley  did  not  attempt  to  ex- 
plore the  passage,  but,  sailing  along  the  coast  south  of  Cape  Flattery, 
which  had  not  been  seen  by  the  people  of  any  civilized  nation  since 
Cook's  voyage,  he  sent  a  boat  ashore  with  some  men,  who  were 
murdered  by  the  savages,  in  the  same  manner,  and  almost  at  the 
same  spot,  where  the  Spaniards  of  Bodega's  crew  were  massacred 
in  1775.  In  commemoration  of  this  melancholy  event,  the  name 
of  Destrvetion  Island  was  given  to  the  small  point  of  land  near  the 
continent,  in  the  latitude  of  47  degrees  35  minutes,  which  had, 
for  the  like  reason,  been  called  by  the  Spaniards  hla  de  Doloret. 
Berkeley,  on  his  arrival  at  Canton,  hi  November  following,  commu- 
nicated the  account  of  his  rediscovery  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca  to 
Meares,  as  expressly  stated  by  the  latter,  in  the  Dissertation  prefixed 
to  the  narrative  of  his  voyages  in  the  Pacific,  published  in  1790 ; 
though,  in  the  narrative  itself,  Meares  unequivocally  claims  as  his 
own  the  whole  merit  of  finding  the  passage. 

At  the  time  when  Berkeley  made  this  communication,  Meares 
was  engaged  in  preparations  for  a  trading  expedition  to  the  north- 
west coasts  of  America,  of  which  a  particular  notice  will  be  here 
presented ;  as  the  circumstances  connected  with  it  led  to  the  first 


178 


IBOQND  TOTAaB  OF  MBAMCI. 


(1789 


M 
i 
P 


■ililiil 


diipute,  and  the  fint  treaty,  between  civilised  nation*,  rahtive  to 
tM  part  of  the  world. 

For  the  expedition  in  question,  two  vcmoU  were  fitted  out  at  the 
Portugueie  port  of  Macao,  near  Canton,  in  China,  from  which,  ai 
already  mentioned,  several  voyages  had  been  previously  made  to 
the  north-west  coasts  of  America,  in  search  of  furs.  They  were 
both  placed  under  the  direction  of  John  Meares,  a  lieutenant  in  the 
British  navy,  on  half  pay,  who  sailed  in  the  ship  Felice  as  super- 
cargo ;  the  other  vessel,  the  brig  Iphigenia,  also  carried  a  tish 
Butjject,  William  Douglas,  in  the  same  capacity :  both  vessels  viere, 
however,  commanded,  ostensibly  at  least,  by  Portuguese  captains ; 
they  were  both  furnished  with  passports,  and  other  papers,  in  the 
Portuguese  language,  granted  by  the  Portuguese  authorities  of 
Macao,  and  showing  them  to  be  the  property  of  Juan  Ca  alio,  a 
Portuguese  merchant  of  that  place ;  the  instructions  for  the  conduct 
of  the  voyage  were  written  only  in  the  Portuguese  languoge,*  and 
contained  nothing  whatsoever  calculated  to  afford  the  slightest 
grounds  for  suspicion  that  other  than  Portuguese  subjects  were 
interested  in  the  enterprise ;  finally,  the  vessels  sailed  from  Macao 
on  the  1st  of  January,  1788,  under  the  Portuguese  flag,  and  there 
is  no  sufficient  proof  that  any  other  was  displayed  by  them  during 
the  expedition. 

Notwithstanding  these  evidences  of  ownership  and  national  char- 
acter, which  appear  to  be  complete  and  unequivocal,  Mr.  Meares, 
ill  the  Memorial  \  addressed  by  him  to  the  British  government,  in 
May,  1790,  asserts  that  the  Felice  and  Iphigenia,  as  well  as  their 
cargoes,  were  actually  and  bona  Jlde  British  property,  employed  in 
the  service  of  British  subjects  only ;  that  Cavallo  had  no  concern 
nor  interest  in  them,  his  name  being  merely  used,  with  his  consent, 
for  the  purpose  of  obtaining  from  the  governor  of  Macao,  who 

*  8eo  the  Journal  of  Doaglu,  the  captain  or  auperoargo  of  the  Iphigenia,  attached 
to  th«  Memorial  of  Meares,  and  the  quotation  from  it  in  the  enauing  chapter,  at 
page  19S. 

f  The  London  Annual  Register  for  1790  contuns  what  purports  to  be  the  Substanct 
of  the  Memorial  of  lieutenant  Meares,  SfC.,  drawn  up  by  Meares  himself,  or  some  one 
in,  his  interests.  In  this  Substance,  the  word  Portuguese  does  not  occur,  nor  is  any 
thing  mentioned  relative  to  the  apparent  character  of  the  vessels,  which  are,  on  the 
contrary,  directly  asserted  to  have  been  British  in  all  respects,  and  navigated  under 
the  British  flag.  Meares's  explanations,  in  his  Memorial,  relative  to  the  arrangements 
with  Cavallo,  are  all  omitted,  the  following  short  paragraph  being  inserted  in  their 
place:  —  "Here  Mr.  Meares,  by  way  of  illustration,  introduces  a  transaction  no 
otherwise  connected  with  his  narrative,  but  as  it  proves  the  merchandise,  Sua.,  of 
which  the  British  ships  were  plundered,  to  have  been  British  property." ' ! !  Such 
■le  the  materiala  from  which  histories  are  generally  composed. 


1788.] 


IMITBUCTIONt   TO   MBARSf. 


178 


oonnived  tt  the  whole  deception,  perniiuion  to  navigate  under  the  Por- 
tuguese flag,  and  thereby  to  evade  the  excciiive  port  chargei  demand- 
ed, by  the  Chinese  authorities,  from  vessels  of  all  other  European 
nations;  and  that  Messrs.  Meares  and  Douglas  were  tcuily  the 
commanden  of  the  vessels  in  which  they  respectively  sailed,  instead 
of  the  Portuguese  subjects,  who  figure  as  such  in  all  the  papers. 
Some  of  these  assertions  may  have  been  true ;  yet  the  <2ociiiii«ii/« 
annexed  to  the  Memorial  conclusively  prove  that  all  these  deceptive 
appearances  were  kept  up  at  Nootka  Sound,  where  there  were  no 
Chinese  authorities ;  though,  in  the  tu»rrative  of  the  voyage,  pub- 
liihed  by  Mr.  Meares,  with  the  Memorial  and  documents,  no  hint 
la  given  that  either  of  the  vessels  were,  or  ever  seemed  to  be,  other 
than  British. 

The  instructions,  of  which  an  English  copy  or  version — dated 
CMm,  December  24M,  1787,  and  signed  The  Merckant  Proprieton 
—is  appended  to  the  Memorial,  contain  general  directions  for  the 
conduct  of  the  voyage,  but  no  aUution  tohattoever  to  the  acguitition 
oflandi,  the  erection  of  buildings,  or  the  formation  of$etthment$  or 
utahHihmentM  of  any  kind,  in  America  or  eUewhere.  The  Felice 
was  to  go  to  Nootka  Sound,  from  which  she  was  to  make  trips 
northward  and  southward,  for  the  purposes  of  trade  and  explora- 
tion ;  the  Iphigenia  was  to  sail  first  to  Cook's  River,  and  thence  to 
trade  along  the  coasts,  southward,  to  Nootka,  where  she  was  ex- 
pected to  arrive  in  September :  all  the  furs  collected  were  then  to 
be  placed  in  one  of  the  vessels,  and  brought  to  Macao,  the  other 
veuel  remaining,  until  the  spring,  either  on  the  American  coast  or 
at  the  Sandwich  Islands.  These  instructions  conclude  with  the 
following  remarkable  order  to  the  commanders  of  the  vessels :  — 
"  Should  you,  in  the  course  of  your  voyage,  meet  with  any  Russian, 
English,  or  Spanish  vessels,  you  will  treat  them  with  civility  and 
friendship,  and  allow  them,  if  authorized,  to  examine  your  papers ; 
but  you  must,  at  the  same  time,  guard  against  surprise.  Should 
they  attempt  to  seize  you,  or  even  to  carry  you  out  of  your  way, 
you  will  prevent  it  by  every  means  in  your  power,  and  repel  force 
by  force.  You  will,  on  your  arrival  m  the  first  port,  ptotest,  before 
a  proper  officer,  against  such  illegal  procedure,  and  ascertain,  as 
nearly  as  you  can,  the  value  of  your  vessel  and  cargo,  sending  your 
protest,  with  a  full  account  of  the  transaction,  to  us  at  China. 
Should  you,  in  such  a  conflict,  have  the  superiority,  you  will  take 
possession  of  the  vessel  that  attacked  you,  and  bring  both,  with  the 


!  * ; 


174 


HEARGS  ARRIVES  AT  NOOTKA. 


[1788. 


I 


K 


ilH.n  ,  :«J  i  ■■»  • 


officers  and  crew,  to  China,  that  they  may  be  condenmed  as  legal 
prizes,  and  the  crews  punished  as  pirates." 

The  latter  part  of  these  instructions,  independently  of  numerous 
other  circumstances  connected  with  the  expedition,  is  sufficient, 
alone,  to  show  that  the  owners  of  the  Felice  and  Iphigenia  meant 
to  represent  them  as  Portuguese  vesseb.  As  British  vessels,  they 
could  not  legally  navigate  the  North  Pacific  Ocean,  being  unpro- 
vided with  licenses  or  authority  from  the  South  Sea  or  the  East 
India  Company:  if  found  so  doing,  they  would  be  subject  to 
seizure,  and  their  officers  and  crew  to  punishment;  and  it  was, 
doubtless,  in  order  to  evade  such  penalties,  to  which  they  might 
have  been  subjected  by  coming  in  contact  with  the  vessels  of  the 
King  George's  Sound  Compaiy,  that  their  commanders  were 
directed  to  take,  and  bring  to  a  Portuguese  port,  for  trial  before 
Portuguese  courts,  any  English  vessels  which  should  attempt  to 
arrest  them  in  their  voyages. 

From  Macao  the  Iphigenia  went  to  Cook's  River,  at  which  placC; 
and  others  farther  south-east,  she  passed  the  sununer  in  trading. 
The  Felice  sailed  direct  to  Nootka  Sound,  where  her  crew  imme- 
diately began  the  construction  of  a  small  vessel,  on  the  shore  of 
Friendly  Cove,  near  which  was  situated  the  village  of  Maquinna, 
the  king  of  the  surrounding  country.  Meares,  being  desirous,  whikt 
this  work  was  in  progress,  to  take  a  voyage  along  the  coast  to  the 
south,  made  arrangements  with  Maquinna,  who,  as  related  in  the 
narrative  of  the  expedition,  "  most  readily  consented  to  grant  us  a 
spot  of  ground  in  his  territory,  whereon  an  house  might  be  built, 
for  the  accommodation  of  the  people  we  intended  to  leave  behind, 
and  also  promised  us  his  assistance  and  protection  for  the  party  who 
were  destined  to  remain  at  Nootka  during  our  absence.  In  return 
for  this  kindness,  and  to  insure  the  continuance  of  it,  the  chief  was 
presented  with  a  pair  of  pistols,  which  he  had  regarded  with  an  eye 
of  solicitation  ever  since  our  arrival.  Upon  this  spot  a  bouse,  suf- 
ficiently capacious  to  contain  all  the  party  intended  to  be  left  at 
the  sound,  was  erected  ;  a  strong  breastwork  was  thrown  up  around 
it,  enclosing  a  considerable  area  of  ground,  which,  with  one  piece 
of  cannon,  placed  in  such  a  manner  as  to  command  the  cove  and 
village  of  Nootka,  formed  a  fortification  sufficient  to  secure  the 
party  from  any  intrusion." 

That  this  spot  of  ground  was  granted  by  Maquinna,  and  was  to 
be  occupied  by  Meares,  only  for  temporary  purposes,  is  clear  from 


I  -/■ 


[1788. 
as  legal 

kumerouB 
lufficient, 
ia  meant 
sels,  they 
ig  unpro- 
the  East 
ubject  to 
d  it  was, 
hey  might 
els  of  the 
dere  were 
rial  before 
attempt  to 

hich  place; 
in  trading. 
;rew  imme- 
6  shore  of 
Maquinna, 
rous,  whilst 
oast  to  the 
Lted  in  the 
grant  us  a 
|ht  be  biult, 
Lve  behind, 
party  who 
In  return 
(6  chief  was 
ith  an  eye 
house,  suf- 
be  left  at 
up  around 
one  piece 
[e  cove  and 
secure  the 

I  and  was  to 
clear  from 


1788.] 


MEARE3  AT  THE  STRAIT  OF  FUCA. 


175 


the  above  statement ;  and  Meares  nowhere  in  his  narrative  pretends 
that  he  acquired  permanent  possession  of  it,  or  of  any  other  land  in 
America.    On  the  contrary,  he  expressly  says  that,  "  as  a  bribe  to 
secure  Maquinna's  attachm'^nt,  he  was  promised  that,  when  we 
finally  left  the  coast,  he  should  enter  into  full  possession  of  the 
house,  and  all  the  goods  thereunto  belonging  "     In  the  Memorial 
addressed  to  his  government,  however,  Meares  declares  that,  "  im- 
mediately on   his  arrival  at  Nootka   Sound,  he  purchased  from 
Maquinna,  the  chief  of  the  district  surrounding  that  place,  a  spot 
of  ground,  whereon  he  built  an  house,  for  his  occasional  residence, 
as  well  as  for  the  more  convenient  pursuit  of  his  trade  among  the 
natives,  and   hoisted  British   colors  thereon."     Of  this  asserted 
purchase  of  land  and  erection  of  buildings  at  Nootka,  no  evidence 
or  mention  whatsoever  is  to  be  found  among  the  documents  sub- 
mitted with  the  Memorial  to  the  British  ministry,  except  in  the 
deposition  of  William  Graham,  of  Grub  Street,  a  seaman  of  the 
Felice,  taken  in  London  after  the  date  of  the  Memorial. 

Having  completed  these  arrangements,  Meares  sailed  from  Nootka 
in  the  Felice,  leaving  a  part  of  his  crew  employed  in  building  the 
small  vessel,  and  proceeded  to  the  entrance  of  the  passage  supposed 
to  be  the  Strait  of  Juan  de  Fuca,  which,  as  he  expressly  states  in 
tiie  Dissertation  prefixed  to  his  narrative,  had  been  discovered  in 
tiie  preceding  year  by  Berkeley.  The  following  extract  from  his 
narrative  will  serve  still  further  to  show  what  value  is  to  be  placed 
on  his  testimony  in  matters  in  which  his  own  reputation  or  interests 
are  involved :  — 

"  June  29th.  At  noon  the  latitude  was  48  degrees  39  minutes 
north,  at  which  time  we  had  a  complete  view  of  an  inlet,  whose 
entrance  appeared  very  extensive,  bearing  east-south-east,  distant 
about  six  leagues.  We  endeavored  to  keep  up  with  the  shore  as 
much  as  possible,  in  order  to  have  a  perfect  view  of  the  land.  This 
was  an  object  of  particular  anxiety,  as  the  part  of  the  coast  along 
which  we  were  now  sailing  had  not  been  seen  by  Captain  CooJc,  and 
we  knew  no  other  navigator,  said  to  have  been  this  way,  except 
Maurelle ;  and  his  chart,  ^ivhich  we  now  had  on  board,  coiivinced 
us  that  he  had  either  never  seen  this  part  of  the  coast,  or  that  he 
had  purposely  misrepresented  it.  By  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon, 
we  arrived  at  the  entrance  of  the  great  inlet,  which  appeared  to  be 
twelve  or  fourteen  leagues  broad.  From  the  mast  head,  it  was 
observed  to  stretch  to  the  east  by  the  north,  and  a  clear  and 
unbounded  horizon  war.  seen,  in  this  direction,  as  far  as  the  eye 


^^^^.l-i 

:'i 

'-m 


176 


MKABES    SEEKS   FOR  THE   GREAT   RIVER. 


[1788. 


11 


i    I 


m 


i 


m 


m 


could  reach.  The  strongest  curiosity  impelled  us  to  enter  this 
strait,  which  we  shall  call  by  the  name  of  its  original  discoverer, 
John  de  Fuca." 

To  examine  the  passage,  —  of  which  he  thus  claims  the  discovery, 
after  having  distinctly  assigned  the  merit  of  it  to  another,  —  Meares 
sent  his  mate,  Duffin,  with  a  party  of  men,  in  a  boat.  In  a  few 
days  the  boat  returned,  with  several  of  her  crew  disabled  by 
wounds  received  in  a  conflict  with  the  natives  on  the  northern 
shore.  "  She  had  sailed,"  writes  Meares,  "  near  thirty  leagues  up 
the  strait ;  and,  at  that  distance  from  the  sea,  it  was  fifteen  leagues 
broad,  with  a  clear  horizon  stretching  to  the  east  for  fifteen  leagues 
more."  Yet,  from  Duffin's  journal,  which  is  given  entire  in  Mr. 
Meares's  work,  it  seems  that  the  boat  did  not  advance  ten  miles 
within  the  strait ;  and  we  now  know  that  the  width  of  the  passage 
nowhere,  within  thirty  leagues  of  its  mouth,  exceeds  five  leagues. 

From  the  entrance  of  this  passage,  which  has  ever  since  been 
distinguished  by  the  name  of  Strait  of  Fuca,  Meares  sailed  along 
the  shore  of  the  continent,  towards  the  south.  His  object  was  to 
examine  the  opening  in  the  coast,  laid  down  on  Spanish  charts  in 
his  possession,  near  the  46th  degree  of  latitude,  under  the  name 
Rio  de  San  Roque,  or  River  of  Saint  Roc,  which  had  been  first 
observed  by  Heceta,  on  the  16th  of  August,  1775,  as  mentioned  in 
the  account  of  that  voyage.*  Proceeding  in  this  course,  he,  on  the 
5th  of  July,  remarked  a  headland,  in  the  latitude  of  46  degrees 
47  minutes,  which  he  named  Cape  Shoalwater;  on  the  following 
day,  he  writes  in  his  journal,  — 

"  At  half  past  ten,  being  within  three  leagues  of  Cape  Shoalwater, 
we  had  a  perfect  view  of  it ;  and,  with  the  glasses,  we  traced  the 
line  of  coast  to  the  southward,  which  presented  no  opening  that 
promised  any  thing  like  an  harbor.  An  high,  bluff  promontory 
bore  off  us  south-east,  at  the  distance  of  only  four  leagues,  for 
which  we  steered  to  double,  with  the  hope  that  between  it  and 
Cape  Shoalwater  we  should  find  some  sort  of  harbor.  We  now 
discovered  distant  land  beyond  this  promontory,  and  we  pleased 
ourselves  with  the  expectation  of  its  being  Cape  St.  Roc  of  the 
Spaniards,  near  which  they  are  said  to  have  found  a  good  port. 
By  half  past  eleven,  we  doubled  this  cape,  at  the  distance  of  three 
miles,  having  a  clear  and  perfect  view  of  the  shore  in  every  part, 
on  which  we  did  not  discern  a  living  creature,  or  the  least  trace  of 
habitable  life.     A  prodigious  easterly  swell  rolled  oh  the  shore,  and 

I 

•  Page  180. 


1788.] 


MGARxlS    DO£S    NOT   FIND   TBE    GREAT   RITER. 


177 


eagues  up 
en  leagues 
en  leagues 
Lire  in  Mr. 
>  ten  miles 
the  passage 
,ve  leagues, 
since  been 
jailed  along 
jject  was  to 
}h  charts  in 
it  the  name 
d  been  first 
nentioned  in 
B,  he,  on  the 
46  degrees 
he  following 

• 

Shoalwater, 
traced  the 
opening  that 
promontory 
leagues,  for 
ween  it  and 
We  now 
we  pleased 
Roc  of  the 
good  port. 
ice  of  three 
every  parti 
least  trace  of 
le  shore,  and 


the  soundings  gradualij'  reased  from  forty  to  sixteen  fathoms,  over 
a  hard,  sandy  bottom.  ^;^ftcr  we  had  rounded  the  promontory,  a 
large  bay,  as  we  had  imagined,  opened  to  our  view,  that  bore  a  veiy 
promising  appearance,  and  into  which  we  steered  with  every  en- 
couraging expectation.  The  high  land  that  formed  the  boundaries 
of  the  bay  was  at  a  great  distance,  and  a  flat,  level  country  occu- 
pied the  intervening  space ;  the  bay  itself  took  rather  a  westerly 
direction.  As  we  steered  in,  the  v  .ter  shoaled  to  ninu,  eight,  and 
seven  fathoms,  when  breakers  were  seen  from  the  deck,  right 
ahead,  and,  from  the  mast  head,  they  were  observed  to  extend 
across  the  bay ;  we  therefore  hauled  out,  and  directed  our  course  to 
the  opposite  shore,  to  see  if  there  was  any  channel,  or  if  we  could 
discover  any  port.  The  name  of  Cape  Disappointment  was  given 
to  the  promontory,  and  the  bay  obtained  the  title  of  Deception  Bay. 
By  an  indiflerent  meridian  observation,  it  lies  in  the  latitude  of  46 
degrees  10  minutes  north,  and  in  the  computed  longitude  of  235 
degrees  34  minutes  east. 

"  We  can  now  with  safety  assert  that,  there  is  no  such  river  as  that 
of  St.  Roc  exists,  as  laid  down  in  the  Spanish  charts.  To  those  of 
Maurclle  we  made  continual  reference,  but  without  deriving  any 
information  or  assistance  from  them.  We  now  reached  the  opposite 
side  of  the  bay,  where  disappointment  continued  to  accompany  us ; 
and,  being  almost  certain  that  there  we  should  obtain  no  place  of 
shelter  for  the  ship,  we  bore  up  for  a  distant  headland,  keeping  oUr 
course  within  two  miles  of  the  shore."  This  distant  headland,  in 
the  latitude  of  45  degrees  37  minutes,  named  by  Meares  Cape 
Lookout,  and  probably  the  same  called  by  the  Spaniards  Cape 
Falcon,  was  the  southernmost  point  seen  by  him;  thence  he  re- 
turned to  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  without  again  observing  the  land, 
having,  as  he  conceived,  "  traced  every  part  of  the  coast,  which 
unfavorable  weather  had  prevented  Captain  Cook  from  approaching." 

The  language  of  Mr.  Meares  in  the  preceding  extracts,  though 
somewhat  ungrammatical,  is  yet  clear  and  explicit.  He  records 
with  satisfaction  his  conviction,  founded  on  his  own  observations, 
that  "  no  such  river  as  that  of  St.  Roc  exists,  as  laid  down  in  the 
<  Spanish  charts ; "  in  token  of  which  conviction,  he  assigns  the 
names  of  Deception  Bay  and  Cape  Disappointment  to  the  places  on 
the  American  coast,  near  the  latitude  of  46  degrees  10  minutes, 
where  the  mouth  of  the  river  should  have  been  found,  according  to 
the  Spanish  charts.  Yet,  strange  though  it  may  appear,  the  com- 
missioners, appointed  by  the  British  government,  in  1826,  to  treat 
23 


In 


ny|l 


178 


MEARES    RETURNS   fO    CHINA. 


[1788. 


with  the  plenipotentiary  of  the  United  States  at  London,  on  the 
lubject  of  the  claims  of  the  respective  parties  to  territories  on  the 
north-west  side  of  America,  insisted  that  Meares,  on  this  occasion, 
discovered  the  great  River  Colvmbia,  which  actually  enters  the 
Pacific  at  Deception  Bay,  and  cited,  in  proof  of  their  assertion,  the 
very  parts  of  his  narrative  above  extract,  d.* 

On  his  way  back  to  Nootka,  Meares  visited  the  two  large  bays, 
called  by  the  natives  Clyoquot  and  Nittinat,  and  by  himself  Port 
Cox  and  Port  Effingham,  situated  a  little  north-west  of  the  entrance 
of  Fuca's  Strait,  where,  he  declares  in  his  Memorial  to  Parliament, 
"  he  obtained  from  Wicanish,  the  chief  of  the  surrounding  districts, 
in  consequence  of  considerable  presents,  the  promise  of  a  free  and 
exclusive  trade  with  the  natives  of  the  district,  as  also  permission 
to  build  any  storehouses  or  other  edifices  which  he  might  judge 
necessary;  and  he  also  acquired  the  same  privileges  of  exclu- 
sive trade  from  Tatooche,  the  chief  of  the  country  bordering  upon 
the  Strait  of  Fuca,  and  purchased  from  him  a  tract  of  land  within 
the  said  strait,  which  one  of  his  officers  took  possession  of,  in  the 
king's  name,  callings  the  same  Tatooche,  in  honor  of  the  chief." 
These  purchases  and  cessions  of  territory  are  not,  however,  in  any 
manner  noticed,  either  in  the  documents  annexed  to  the  Memorial, 
or  in  the  narrative  of  the  voyage,  which  is  most  tediously  minute 
as  to  the  circumstances  of  Mr.  Meares's  interviews  with  those  chief?. 

At  the  end  of  July,  Meares  returned  to  Nootka  Sound,  where 
the  Iphigenia  soon  after  arrived  from  the  northern  coasts,  laden  with 
furs.  The  small  vessel,  which  had  been  begun  at  Friendly  Cove, 
was  then  launched,  and  received  the  name  of  the  North-West 
America ;  and  Meares,  considering  the  season  as  not  too  far  ad- 
vanced for  a  voyage  across  the  Pacific,  transferred  to  the  Felice 
all  the  furs  which  had  been  collected,  and  sailed  in  her,  on  the 
38th  of  September,  for  China,  leaving  directions  that  the  Iphigenia 
and  the  North-West  America  should  proceed  to  the  Sandwich 
Islands  for  the  winter,  and  return  in  the  following  spring  to  Nootka, 
where  he  would  rejoin  them. 

Before  the  departure  of  Meares  from  Nootka,  two  other  vesseb 
entered  the  sound,  whose  voyages  merit  particular  attention. 

Immediately  after  the  recognition  of  the  independence  of  the 
United  States  of  America,  the  citizens  of  that  republic  resumed  the 


*  See  Britiih  statement,  amon^  the  Froofk  and  IlluatrationB,  in  the  latter  part  of 
this Volome, letter H.  •■■  -    .-- 


1787.]         AMERICANS    ENGAGE    IN   TBADE    IN   THE    PACITIC. 


179 


whale  and  seal  fishery  around  Cape  Horn,  which  they  had  carried 
on  before  the  revolution,  and  also  engaged  in  the  direct  trade  with 
India  and  China.  In  the  latter  countries,  however,  they  labored 
under  great  disadvuntages,  from  the  inferiority  in  value  of  the 
articles  carried  thither  to  those  brought  back  by  them,  in  conse- 
quence of  which  they  were  obliged  to  take  out  large  quantities  of 
specie,  in  order  to  obtain  full  homeward  cargoes.  With  the  view 
of  obviating  this  inequality,  some  merchants  of  Boston,  in  1787, 
formed  an  association  for  the  purpose  of  combining  the  fur  trade 
of  the  North  Pacific  with  the  China  trade,  as  attempted  by  the 
King  George's  Sound  Company  of  London ;  and  in  such  an  enter- 
prise they  certainly  had  reason  to  anticipate  success,  as,  with 
industry  and  nautical  skill  unsurpassed  by  any  other  nation,  the 
Americans  were  free  from  the  restrictions  imposed  on  British 
subjects  by  the  charters  of  the  South  Sea  and  East  India  Com- 
panies.* 

In  prosecution  of  this  <jcheme,  the  ship  Columbia,  of  two  hundred 
and  twenty  tons,  and  the  sloop  Washington,  of  ninety  tons,  were 
fitted  out  at  Boston  in  the  summer  of  1787,  and  laden  with  blan- 
kets, knives,  iron  bars,  copper  pans,  and  other  articles  proper  for  the 
trade  with  the  Indians  on  the  north-west  coasts.  The  Columbia 
was  commanded  by  John  Kendrick,  to  whom  was  intrusted  the 


*  The  first  American  citizens  who  engaged  in  the  whaling  and  sealing  business 
around  Cape  Horn,  after  the  peace  of  1783,  were  the  Nantucket  men,  as  will  be  here- 
after more  particularly  stated. 

The  first  American  vessel  whicji  entered  the  port  of  Canton  was  the  ship  Empress 
of  China,  from  New  York,  commanded  by  Daniel  Parker,  with  Samuel  Shaw  as 
supercargo:  she  arrived  in  China  in  the  latter  part  of  the  summer  of  1784,  and 
returned  to  New  York  in  May  of  the  following  year.  Mr.  Shaw  was  appointed 
consul  of  the  United  States  at  Canton  in  January,  1796 ;  and,  on  the  Slst  of  Decem- 
ber of  the  same  year,  he  addressed  to  his  government,  from  Canton,  an  interesting 
memoir  on  the  state  of  commerce  at  that  place,  which  still  remains,  with  many  other 
communications  from  him,  unpublished,  in  the  archives  of  the  Department  of  State  at 
Washington.  In  1787,  not  less  than  five  American  vessels  were  employed  in  the 
trade  with  China;  among  them  were  the  Canton,  under  Captain  Thomas  Truxton, 
who  afterwards  distinguished  himself  in  the  naval  service  of  his  country,  and  the  old 
frigate  Alliance,  so  celebrated  during  the  war  of  the  revolution,  which  had  been  sold 
by  order  of  Congress,  and  fitted  out  as  a  trading  vessel,  under  the  command  of  John 
Reed.  The  Alliance  entered  Canton  on  the  29th  of  December,  1787;  and  her  arrival 
at  that  season  caused  much  astonishment,  as  it  had  been  previously  considered  impos- 
sible for  a  vessel  to  sail  from  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  to  China  between  October  and 
April,  on  account  of  the  violence  of  the  winds,  blowing  constantly,  during  that 
period,  from  the  north-east.  Reed,  however,  had  steered  eastward  from  the  Cape  of 
(xood  Hope,  to  the  southern  extremity  of  Van  Dieman's  Land,  around  the  east  coasts 
of  which  ialan^,  and  of  New  Holland,  he  sailed  into  the  China  Sea;  and  the  course 
thus  pointed  out  by  him  has  been  since  often  taken,  especially  by  American  vesaeb. 


180 


TOTAOES  or  THE  COLUMBIA  AND  WASHINGTOK. 


[1788. 


i'i' 

'  5i|  :< ,,  ', 


4  i  i  iii 


direction  of  the  expedition ;  and  her  mate  was  Joseph  Ingraham, 
whose  name  will  often  appear  in  the  following  pages.  The 
master  of  the  Washington  was  Robert  Gray.  They  were  provided 
with  sea  letters  issued  by  the  federal  government,  agreeably  to  a 
resolution  of  Congress,  and  with  passports  from  the  state  of  Massa- 
chusetts; and  they  received  letters  from  the  Spanish  minister 
plenipotentiary  in  the  United  States,  recommending  them  to  the 
attention  of  the  authorities  of  his  nation  on  the  Pacific  coasts. 
They,  moreover,  carried  out,  for  distribution  at  such  places  as  they 
might  visit,  a  number  of  small  copper  coins,  then  recently  issued 
by  the  state  of  Massachusetts,'"'  and  likewise  medals  of  copper, 
struck  expressly  for  the  purpose,  of  one  of  which  a  representation  is 
here  given. 


The  two  vessels  sailed  together  from  Boston  on  the  30th  of 
September,  1787 :  thence  they  proceeded  to  the  Cape  Verd  Islands, 
and  thence  to  the  Falkland  Islands,  in  each  of  which  places  they 
procured  refreshments ;  and,  in  January,  1788,  they  doubled  Cape 
Horn,  immediately  after  which  they  were  separated  during  a  violent 
gale.  The  Washington,  continuing  her  course  through  the  Pacific, 
made  the  north-west  coast  in  August,  1788,  near  the  46th  degree 
of  latitude,  where  she  was  in  danger  of  destruction,  having  grounded 
while  attempting  to  enter  an  opening,  which  was,  most  probably, 
the  mouth  of  the  great  river  afterwards  named  by  Gray  the 
Columbia.  She  was  also  attacked  there  by  the  savages,  who  killed 
one  of  her  men,  and  wounded  the  mate ;  but  she  escaped  without 
further  injury,  and,  on  the  17th  of  September,  reached  Nootka 

•  Alexander  Mackenzie,  in  July,  TTQS,  found,  in  the  poBsession  of  a  native  of  the 
country  east  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  a  "halfi»enny  of  the  state  of  Massachusetts  Bay, 
coined  in  1787,"  which  was  doubtleu  one  of  those  taken  out  by  Kendrick  and 

Gray,.  ■■         ■  -     ■  


1788.] 


V0TA0E8   or    THE   COLUMBIA   AND   WASHINGTON. 


181 


Sound,  where  the  Felice  and  Iphigenia  were  lying,  as  already 
mentioned.*  The  Columbia  did  not  enter  the  sound  until  some 
days  afterwards.  She  had  been  seriously  injured  in  the  storm' 
which  separated  her  from  her  consort ;  and  Kendrick  was  obliged, 
in  consequence,  to  put  into  the  harbor  of  the  Island  of  Juan  Fer- 
nandez, where  he  was  received  with  great  kindness,  and  aided 
in  refitting  his  vessel,  by  Don  Bias  Gonzales,  the  commandant  of 
the  Spanish  garrison.  The  repairs  having  been  completed,  the 
Columbia  continued  her  voyage,  and  arrived  at  Nootka,  which 
had  been  selected  as  the  place  of  rendezvous,  without  further 
accident,  in  Octobei . 

Soon  after  the  arrival  of  the  Columbia  at  Nootka,  the  Iphigenia 
and  North- West  America  took  their  departure  for  the  Sandwich 
Islands,  where  they  remained  until  the  spring  of  1789.  The  two 
American  vessels  spent  the  winter  in  the  sound,  where  the  Columbia 
also  lay  during  the  whole  of  the  following  summer,  whilst  the 
important  events  related  in  the  next  chapter  were  in  progress. 

*  Mearee,  in  his  narrative,  gives  the  following  account  of  the  arrival  rf  the 
Washington  at  Nootka  Sound:  — 

"  September  17th,  1788.  —  A  sail  was  seen  in  the  offing.  The  long-boat  was  imme- 
diately sent  to  her  assistance,  which,  instead  of  the  British  vessel  we  expected, 
conveyed  into  the  sound  a  sloop  named  the  Washington,  from  Boston,  in  New 
England,  of  about  one  hundred  tons'  burthen.  Mr.  Gray,  the  master,  informed  us 
that  he  had  sailed,  in  company  with  his  consort,  the  Columbia,  a  ship  of  three  hundred 
tons,  in  the  month  of  August,  1787,  being  equipped,  under  the  patronage  of  Congress, 
to  examine  the  coast  of  America,  and  to  open  a  fur  trade  between  New  England  and 
this  part  of  the  American  continent,  in  order  to  provide  funds  for  their  China  ships, 
to  enable  them  to  return  home  teas  and  China  goods.  The  vessels  were  separated  in 
a  heavy  gale  of  wind,  in  the  latitude  of  59  south,  and  had  not  seen  each  other  since 
the  period  of  their  separation ;  but,  as  King  George's  Sound  was  the  place  of  ren- 
dezvous appointed  for  them,  the  Columbia,  if  she  was  safe,  was  every  day  expected 
to  join  her  consort  at  Nootka.  Mr.  Gray  informed  me  that  he  had  put  into  an  harbor 
on  the  coast  of  New  Albion,  where  he  got  on  shore,  and  was  in  danger  of  being  lost 
on  the  bar ;  he  was  also  attacked  by  the  natives,  had  one  man  killed,  and  one  of  his 
officers  wounded,  and  thought  himself  fortunate  in  having  been  able  to  make  his 
escape.  This  harbor  could  only  admit  vessels  of  small  size,  and  must  lie  somewhere 
near  the  cape  to  which  we  had  given  the  name  of  Cape  Lookout." 

That  this  harbor  was  the  mouth  of  the  great  river  since  called  the  Columbia,  is  most 
probable  from  its  situation,  and  because  tliere  is  no  evidence  or  reason  to  suppose  that 
Gray  visited  that  part  of  the  coast  on  any  other  occasion  prior  to  his  meeting  with 
Vancouver,  on  the  29th  of  April,  1793,  as  will  be  related  in  the  eleventh  chapter. 


i^f^ 


:i:  I 


,.:, 


183 


!,  T- 


..yf 


I.  '  ,r; 


CHAPTER   VIII. 


t'iU, 


.  i>y. '  ':■! 


1788  AND  1789. 


UneaainesB  of  the  Spanish  Governinont  at  the  Proceedings  of  the  Far  Traders  in  the 
North  Pacific  —  Voyage  of  Observation  by  Martinez  and  Haro  to  the  Russian 
American  Settlements  —  Remonstrances  of  the  Court  of  Madrid  to  that  of  St. 
Petersburg,  against  the  alleged  Encroachments  of  the  latter  Power  —  Martinex 
and  Haro  sent  by  the  Viceroy  of  Mexico  to  take  Possession  of  Nootka  Sound— 
Seizure  of  British  and  other  Vessels  at  Nootka  by  Martinez  —  Captain  Gray,  in 
the  Washington,  explores  the  East  Coast  of  Queen  Charlotte's  Island,  and  en- 
ters the  Strait  of  Fuoa  —  Return  of  the  Columbia  to  the  United  States. 


Having,  in  the  preceding  chapter,  presented  a  sketch  of  the  geo- 
graphical discoveries  efiected  on  the  north-west  coasts  of  America, 
in  the  interval  between  the  time  of  Cook's  last  voyage  and  the  year 
1790,  we  now  proceed  to  relate  ithe  important  events  of  a  political 
nature,  which  occurred  on  those  coasts  during  the  latter  part  of  the 
same  period.  These  events  have  been  variously  represented — or 
rather  misrepresented  —  by  the  historians  to  whom  reference  is  usu- 
ally made  for  information  respecting  them ; '"'  and  ample  proofs  will 
be  here  offered,  that  the  most  essential  circumstances  have  been  ex- 
hibited in  false  forms,  and  under  false  colors,  either  designedly,  or 
from  indifference  and  want  of  research  on  the  part  of  the  authors. 

The  movements  of  the  fur  traders  in  the  North  Pacific  were, 
from  the  beginning,  regarded  with  dissatisfaction  and  mistrust  by  the 
court  of  Madrid.  It  was  at  first  proposed  to  counteract  them  by 
monopolizing  that  branch  of  commerce ;  for  which  object  an  agent 
was  despatched  to  California,  in  1786,  with  orders  to  collect  all  the 


■  J    -    !-■ 


\i      -A: 


%h 


*  Namely,  the  histories  of  England,  by  Bissett,  Miller,  Belsham,  (in  which  latter 
the  accounts  are  more  fair  and  more  nearly  correct  than  in  any  other,)  Hughes,  Wade, 
and  the  Pictorial  History  of  England  —  Schoell's  Histoire  des  Traites  de  Paix  — Bren- 
ton's  Naval  History  of  Great  Britain,  lost  edition  —  Introduction  to  the  Journal  of 
Galiano  and  Valdes  —  History  of  Maritime  and  Inland  Discovery,  by  T.  D.  Cooley— 
Gifford's  Life  of  William  Pitt,  &c.  In  the  most  recent  ot  these  works,  namely,  the 
Pictorial  History  of  England,  the  account  is  farthest  from  the  truth ;  the  author  has 
evidently  not  consulted  any  original  evidence  on  the  subject,  except,  possibly,  the 
Memorial  of  Mearcs,  or  the  ab^itract  of  that  paper  in  the  Annual  Register. 


nk6ki 


APFRBUXNfllONB    OT   THB    BPAWISU   OOTEBNMBirT. 


183 


aOBL  Otter  skins  *  obtainable  there,  and  carry  them  for  sale  to  Canton : 
but  the  enterprise  proved  unsuccessful,  as  the  agent  could  only  ob* 
tain  a  small  number  of  furs,  of  inferior  quality,  the  produce  of  the 
sale  of  which  in  China  did  not  cover  the  expenses  of  their  tran»* 
portation. 

Considerable  uneasiness  was  also  created  at  Madrid,  by  the  en- 
deavors of  the  British  government  to  advance  the  whale  and  seal 
fishery  in  the  seas  surrounding  the  southern  extremity  of  America. 
A  number  of  experienced  whalers,  especially  from  Nantucket,  had 
been  induced,  immediately  after  the  peace  of  1783,  to  engage  in 
this  business,  under  the  British  flag;  and  high  premiums  were 
offered  by  act  of  Parliament,  in  1786,  to  encourage  perseverance  in 
the  pursuit.  As  British  vessels  and  subjects  would  thus  necessa- 
rily frequent  the  unoccupied  coasts  of  Patagonia  and  the  adjacent 
islands,  it  was  apprehended,  by  the  Spanish  government,  that  estab- 
lishments might  be  formed  in  those  regions,  for  their  protection ; 
tiic  natural  consequence  of  which  would  be,  the  introduction  of 
foreign  merchandise,  and  of  opinions  contrary  to  the  interests  of 
Spain,  into  the  contiguous  provinces.  In  order  to  provide  against 
these  evils,  the  Spaniards  increased  their  garrison  at  Port  Soledad, 
in  the  Falkland  Islands,  as  well  as  their  naval  force  in  that  quarter ; 
and  an  attempt  was  made,  under  the  patronage  of  their  government, 
to  organize  a  company  for  the  whale  and  seal  fishery  in  the  South- 
em  Ocean,  which  proved  entirely  abortive. 

It  was  from  Russia,  however,  that  the  Spanish  government  an- 
ticipated the  greatest  danger  to  its  dominions  on  the  Pacific  side  of 
America.  Of  the  commerce  and  establishments  of  that  nation  on 
the  northernmost  coasts  of  the  Pacific,  enough  had  been  learned 
from  the  narrative  of  Cook's  expedition,  and  other  works  then  re- 
cently published,  to  show  their  advancement,  and  the  enterprise  of 
those  by  whom  they  Vvere  conducted,  as  well  as  the  determination 
of  the  Russian  government  to  maintain  and  encourage  them  ;  and 
La  Perouse,  during  the  stay  of  his  ships  at  Conception,  in  Chili,  in 
1786,  promised,  at  the  particular  request  of  the  captain-general,  to 
communicate  confidentially  to  the  viceroy  of  Mexico  the  results  of 
the  observations  on  those  subjects  which  he  might  make  in  Kamt- 
chatka  and  the  islands  and  coasts  of  America  adjacent.  La  Pe- 
rouse, however,  did  not  return  to  America  after  his  visit  to  Kamt- 
chatka,  nor  was  any  information  on  the  points  in  question  received 
from  him  by  the  Spanish  authorities ;  and  the  viceroy  of  Mexico, 

•  La  F6rouBe  —  Portlock. 


m 


I 


m 


i.i  !|  Tr 


184 


APPRXHENSIONS    Or   THE    SPANISH    GOVERNMENT. 


[1787. 


having  waited  in  vain  for  the  promised  intelligence  until  the  ena  of 

1787,  resolved  to  despatch  vessels  to  the  North  Pacific,  in  order  to 
ascertain  the  truth  with  regard  to  the  trade  and  settlements  of  the 
Russians  and  other  foreign  nations  on  the  coasts  of  that  division  of 
the  ocean. 

Before  relating  the  particulars  of  the  expedition  made  for  that 
purpose,  a  circumstance  may  be  mentioned,  which  serves  to  show 
the  state  of  feeling  of  the  Spanish  government  at  the  period  in 
question,  with  regiard  to  the  proceedings  of  foreigners  in  the  Pacific, 
and  the  extent  of  the  measures  which  it  was  ready  to  adopt  in  order 
to  exclude  them  from  that  ocean.  It  has  been  said,  in  the  preced- 
ing chapter,  that  the  ship  Columbia  having  received  some  damage 
on  her  way  from  Boston  to  the  north-west  coast  of  America,  in  May, 

1788,  entered  a  harbor  in  the  Island  of  Juan  Fernandez,  where  as- 
sistance was  afforded  in  refitting  her  by  the  Spanish  commandant 
Don  Bias  Gonzales  and  his  garrison.    After  her  departure,  the 
commandant  communicated  the  circumstances,  by  a  despatch,  to 
his  immediate  superior,  the  captain-general  of  Chili,  who  thereupon 
recalled  Gonzales  from  the  island,  and  placed  him  in  arrest,  address- 
ing, at  the  same  time,  a  report  on  the  subject,  with  a  request  for 
instructions,  to  the  viceroy  of  Peru.     The  viceroy,  after  consulting 
with  his  official  legal  adviser,  replied  to  the  captain-general  at  length 
on  the  subject,  and  expressed  his  surprise  and  displeasure  at  the  mis- 
conduct of  the  conunandant  of  Juan  Fernandez,  in  allowing  the 
strange  ship  to  leave  the  harbor,  instead  of  seizing  her  and  her  crew; 
as  he  should  have  known  that,  by  the  royal  ordinance  of  November, 
1692,  every  foreign  vessel  found  in  those  seas,  without  a  license 
from  the  court  of  Spain,  was  to  be  treated  as  an  enemy,  even  though 
belonging  to  a  friend  or  ally  of  the  king,  seeing  that  no  other  nation 
had,  or  ought  to  have,  any  territories,  to  reach  which  its  vessels 
should  pass  around  Cape  Horn  or  through  Magellan's  Straits.    In 
so  serious  a  light  did  the  viceroy  regard  the  matter,  that  a  ship  was 
sent  from  Callao  to  track  or  intercept  the  Columbia ;  the  authori- 
ties on  the  coasts  of  Peru  and  Chili  were  specially  enjoined  to  be 
vigilant,  and,  in  case  any  foreign  vessel  should  appear  in  the  vicini- 
ty, to  seize  her ;  and  the  whole  affair  was  made  known  by  a  de- 
spatch to  the  viceroy  of  Mexico,  in  order  that  similar  precautions 
might  be  adopted  on  his  part.    The  unfortunate  commandant  Gon- 
zales was  cashiered  for  his  remissness ;  and  he  subsequently  ad- 
dressed a  petition  to  the  government  of  the  United  States  for  its 
intercession  with  his  sovereign.    Thus  were  half  of  the  Spanish  do- 


e  ena  of 
i  order  to 

its  of  the 
vision  of 

for  that 
to  show 
period  in 
le  Pacific, 
t  in  order 
e  preced- 
16  damage 
a,  in  May, 
where  as- 
tninandant 
irture,  the 
sspatch,  to 
thereupon 
st,  address- 
request  for 
consulting 
il  at  length 
at  the  mis- 
owing  the 
her  crew ; 
November, 
a  license 
ven  though 
thcr  nation 
its  vessels 
traits.    In 
a  ship  was 
16  authori- 
ined  to  be 
the  vicini- 
n  by  a  de- 
irecautions 
idant  Gon- 
juently  ad- 
ites  for  its 
Ipanish  do- 


1788.] 


VOTAGE  or  MARTINEZ  AND  HARD. 


185 


minions  in  America  thrown  into  alarm  and  agitation,  by  the  appear- 
ance of  a  trading  ship  from  the  United  States  on  the  Pacific :  yet 
Teodor  Lacroix,  the  viceroy  of  Peru,  and  Ambrose  O'Higgins,  cap- 
tain-general of  Chili,  were  men  of  education  and  experience,  diiJtin- 
guished  for  their  courage  and  sagacity ;  but  such  was  the  jealous 
system  which  they  were  bound  to  support.* 

For  the  expedition  of  inquiry  to  the  nprth-west  coasts  of  America, 
the  viceroy  of  Mexico  employed  two  vessels,  the  corvette  Princesa, 
commanded  by  Estevan  Martinez,  (who  had  been  the  pilot  in  the 
voyage  of  Juan  Perez,  in  1774,)  and  the  schooner  San  Carlos,  under 
Lieutenant  Gonzalo  Haro.  They  were  instructed  to  proceed  direct- 
ly to  Prince  William's  Sound,  and  to  make  every  poiisible  inquiry 
and  examination  respecting  the  establishments  of  the  Russians  there 
and  in  other  parts  of  America  adjacent ;  having  completed  whiwh, 
they  were  to  explore  the  coasts  southward  to  California,  if  time 
should  be  left  for  that  purpose,  seeking  particularly  for  places 
convenient  for  the  reception  of  Spanish  colonies :  and  they  were 
especially  enjoined  to  treat  the  natives  of  the  places  which  they 
might  visit  with  kindness,  and  not  to  engage  in  any  quarrel  with  the 
Russians. 

Of  this  voyage  of  Martinez  and  Haro,  a  short  account  will  suffice. 
They  quitted  San  Bias  on  the  8th  of  March,  1788,  and,  on  the 
25th  of  May,  they  anchored  in  the  entrance  of  Prince  William's 
Sound,  where  they  lay  nearly  a  month,  without  making  any  attempt  * 
to  examine  the  surrounding  shores.  At  length,  in  the  end  d'June, 
Haro,  having  sailed,  in  the  San  Carlos,  along  the  coast  o£  the^wean 
farther  south-west,  discovered  a  Russian  establishment  on  the  east 
side  of  the  Island  of  Kodiak,  under  the  command  of  a  Greek,  named 
Delaref,  with  whom  he  was  able  to  communicate ;  and  from  this 
person  he  received  detailed  accounts  of  all  the  Russian  establish- 
ments in  that  quarter.  On  the  3d  of  July,  Haro  rejoined  Martinez, 
who  had,  in  the  mean  time,  explored  the  coasts  of  Prince  William's 
Sound ;  and  they  proceeded  together  along  the  eastern  side  of  the 

*  The  petition  of  Gonzales,  with  copies  of  his  reporiB  to  the  oapt^n-general,  snd 
tiie  sentence  pronounced  against  him,  remain  in  manuscript  in  the  archives  of  the 
Department  of  State  at  Washington.  Mr.  Jefferson,  MOiettty  of  state  of  the  United 
States,  recommended  his  case  to  the  Spanish  goTemmeni;  in  <4  kiUer  to  Mr.  Carmi- 
chael,  then  plenipotentiary  at  Madrid,  dated  April  11th,  1790^' l^tfa  what  success  is 
not  known.  The  other  particulars  here  related  of  this  ouiious'afiEkir  are  derived  from 
the  General  Report,  or  Instructions,  left  by  the  viceroy  of  ^Peru  tb  his  successor,  on 
li'j  retirement  from  that  office,  which  was  published  at  London  in  1839,  in  the  BibUo- 
taa  Amerieana,. 

.       24 


.11;. 


m 


I  i 


•W11 


Hi     ! 


■•';  fi 


li 
[(I 


til 


!    'I 
I  ' 


186 


TOTAOE    or    MARTINEZ    AND    HARO. 


[1789. 


peninsula  of  Aliaska,  to  Unalaihka,  tho  largest  of  the  Aleutian 
Islands,  where  they  arrived  on  the  30th  of  August.  There  they  re- 
mained until  tho  18th  of  September,  receiving  every  attention  from 
the  Russians  belonging  to  the  factory,  and  then  suiled  for  the  soi'th. 
In  their  voyage  homeward,  tho  vessels  were  separated :  Haro  re-rched 
San  Bias  on  the  22d  of  October ;  Martinez  did  not  enter  that  port 
until  the  6th  of  December,  having  put  into  Monterey  for  refresh- 
ments.* 

The  geographical  observations  made  in  this  expedition  were  of 
little  value  at  the  time ;  and  it  would  be  needless  to  notice  them 
here,  as  the  coasts  to  which  they  relate  have  been  since  completely 
surveyed.  Agreeably  to  the  report  presented  by  Martinez,  on  his 
return  to  the  viceroy  of  Mexico,  the  Russian  establishments  in  Amer- 
ica at  that  time  were  in  number  eight,  all  situated  east  of  Pri>ice 
William's  Sound,  on  whicli,  however,  one  was  then  in  progrebb, 
and  they  contained,  together,  two  hundred  and  fifty-two  Russian 
subjects,  nearly  all  of  whom  were  natives  of  Kamtchatka  or  Sibe- 
ria. Martinez  was,  moreover,  informed  that  two  vessels  iiad  been 
sent  in  that  summer  from  Kodiak,  to  found  a  settlement  at  Nootka 
Sound,  and  that  two  large  ships  were  in  preparation  at  Ochotsk,  for 
further  operations  of  the  same  nature.  The  vessels  sent  from  Ko- 
diak were  doubtless  those  which  proceeded,  under  Ismyloff  and 
Betscharef,  along  the  coast  t  hatward  to  the  foot  of  Mount  St.  Elias; 
the  others  were  those  inttuided  for  the  expedition  under  Billings, 
which  was  not  begun  until  1790. 

These  accounts  of  the  establishments  and  projects  of  the  Rus- 
sians were  immediately  communicated  to  the  court  of  Madrid, 
which  addressed  to  the  empress  of  Russia  a  remonstrance  against 
such  encroachments  of  her  subjects  upon  the  territories  of  his  Cath- 
olic majesty.  In  the  memorial  conveying  this  remonstrance,  it  is  to 
be  remarked  that  Prince  fVilliam't  Sound  is  assumed  as  separating 
the  dominions  of  the  two  sovereigns  ;  it  being  doubtless  intended, 

*  The  preceding  account  of  tlil'  voyage  ia  derived  from  the,  joiirtial  of  Martinez, 
of  which  a  copy,  in  manuscript,  was  obtained  from  t    :   ir^ri'-.  ».'<    I'^al  office 
Madrid. 

The  first  hotice  of  this  expedition,  published  in  Europe,  was  taken  from  a  letter 
written  at  San  Bias,  soon  after  the  arrival  of  Haro  at  that  port,  in  which  it  was  aaid 
tiat  the  Spaniards  had  found  Russian  establishments  between  the  forty-ninth  and 
Wj\ftie:h  degrees  of  latitude,  instead  of  iettrecn  the  fifty-ninth  and  the  sixtieth  degrut, 
n.iA  vt  this  error,  such  na  is  daily  committed  by  persons  ignorant  of  nautical  matters, 
M.  I'-ilo'ica,  ,te  Russirp  envoy  in  the  United  States,  endeavored,  in  1822,  to  found  a 
<"V\tm  ti  ■  \::^  sovereign  to  ihe  tehoU  of  the  American  coasts  and  islands  on  the  Patiff 
Viorth  f>f  K'.t  forty-ninth  ^.i.trallel.    See  hereafter,  chap.  xvi. 


1789.] 


CLAIMS    or    SPAIN    EXAMINED. 


187 


by  means  of  this  geographical  obscurit  v  to  leave  undefined  the  del- 
icate ('  stion  as  to  the  limits  of  Bpaiuah  'America  in  the  north- 
west. The  empress  of  Russia  un^^nrrd^^tiial  orci'rs  had  been 
given  to  her  subjects  not  to  mukn  settleinoh<»  in  pl&ce'  '^^longing 
to  other  nations ;  and,  if  those  orders  had  l^efMi  >  'la ted  w  tth  regard 
to  Spanish  America,  she  desired  the  king  of  Spain  to  arr(  >  the  en- 
croachments, in  a  friendly  manner.  With  this  answer,  more  «  < 
teous  than  specific,  tho  Spanish  minister  professed  himsf^lf  content ; 
observing,  however,  in  his  reply,  that  Spain  "  could  noi  ^  '•'^'ipoi  - 
gible  for  wimt  her  officers  might  do,  at  places  so  distant,  v  'lilst  the} 
wcit  (  in^  under  general  orders  to  allow  no  settlemen'  to  be 
Tadr  i)y  ulior  nations  on  the  Spanish  American  continent.'  * 

Ir  'ho  mean  time,  however,  the  viceroy  of  Mexico,  Don  Manuel 
de  Flores,  had,  in  virtue  of  hu  general  instructions,  taken  a  deci^  ve 
measure  with  regard  to  Nootka  Sound.  For  that  purpose,  l>e  ue- 
spat.hed  Martinez  and  Haro  from  San  Bias,  early  in  1789,  with  their 
vessels  manned  and  equipped  effectively  ;  ordering  them,  in  case  any 
British  or  Russian  vessel  should  appear  at  Nootka,  to  receive  her 
with  the  attention  and  civility  required  by  the  peace  and  friendship 
existing  between  Spain  and  those  nations,  but,  at  t\^e  same  tirr^e, 
to  declare  the  paramount  rights  of  his  Catholic  majesty  to  the  place, 
and  the  adjacent  coasts,  firmly,  though  discreetly,  and  without  using 
iiarsh  or  insulting  languag&f 

Before  entering  upon  the  narrative  of  the  events  which  followed, 
it  should  be  observed,  with  regard  to  the  right  of  the  Spanish  gov- 
ernment thus  to  take  possession  of  Nootka,  that,  before  the  6th  of 
May,  1789,  when  Martinez  entered  the  sound  with  that  object,  no 
settlement,  factory,  or  other  establishment  whatsoever,  had  been 
founded  or  attempted,  nor  had  any  jurisdiction  been  exercised 
by  the  authorities  or  subjects  of  a  civilized  nation,  in  any  part  of 
America  bordering  upon  the  Pacific,  between  Port  San  Francisco, 
iiear  the, 38th  degree  of  north  latitude,  and  Prince  William's  Sound, 
near  the  60th.  The  Spaniards,  the  British,  the  Russians,  and  the 
French,  had,  indeed,  landed  at  many  places  on  those  coasts,  where 
they  had  displayed  flags,  performed  ceremonies,  and  erected  monu- 
ments, by  way  of  taking  possession  —  us  it  was  termed  —  of  the  ad- 


*  Memorial  ada^tttmti  kiy  the  court  of  Spain  to  that  of  London,  dated  June  13th, 
1790,  among  the  Proofii  a»td  Illuatrations,  in  the  latter  part  of  this  volume,  under  the 
letter  D,  No.  3. 

t  Abstract  of  thoge  instructiona  to  Martinez,  in  the  Introduction  to  the  Journal  of 
Galiano  and  V»ldes,  p.  10b. 


188 


RIGHTS    DERIVED   FROM   DISCOVERT. 


It  • 


i  : 


m 


vi 


[1789. 


jacent  territories  for  their  respective  sovereigns ;  but  such  acts  are, 
and  were  then,  generally  considered  as  empty  pageants,  securing 
no  real  rights  to  those  by  whom,  or  in  whose  names,  they  were  per- 
formed. Nor  does  it  appear  that  any  portion  of  the  above-men- 
tioned territories  had  become  the  property  of  a  foreigner,  either  by 
purchase,  occupation,  or  any  other  title,  which  can  be  regarded  as 
valid.  It  has  been  already  said  that  Mr.  Meares,  in  his  Memorial, 
addressed  to  the  British  Parliament,  in  1790,  laid  claim  to  certain 
tractf  f  land  about  Nootka  Sound,  as  having  been  ceded  to  him  by 
the  btaves  of  the  country,  in  1788;  but  it  was,  at  the  same  time, 
shown  that  this  claim  was  unsupported  by  sufficient  evidence,  and 
was,  moreover,  directly,  as  well  as  indirectly,  contradicted  by  Mr. 
Meares  himself,  in  hia  journal  of  the  same  proceedings:  and  other 
circumstances  will  be  mentioned  hereafter,  serving  to  prove  the 
falsehood  of  that  person's  assertions,  and  of  his  pretensions  to  the 
possession  of  any  part  of  the  American  territory. 

The  right  of  exclusive  sovereignty  over  these  extensive  regions 
was  claimed  by  Spain,  in  virtue  of  the  papal  concession,  1493,  of 
the  first  discovery  of  their  coasts  by  Spanish  subjects,  and  of  the 
contiguity  of  the. territories  to  the  settled  dominions  of  Spain.  Of 
the  validity  of  the  title  derived  from  the  papal  concession  it  appears 
to  be  needless,  at  the  present  day,  to  speak.  That  the  Spaniards 
were  the  first  discoverers  of  the  west  coasts  of  America,  at  least  as 
far  north  as  the  56th  parallel  of  latitude,  has  been  already  shown ; 
and  the  fact  is,  and  has  been  ever  since  the  publication  of  Maurelle's 
Journal,  in  1781,  as  indisputable  as  that  the  Portuguese  discovered 
the  south  coasts  of  Africa.  The  extent  of  the  rights  derived  from 
discovery  are,  however,  by  no  means  clearly  defined  by  writers  on 
public  law ;  and  the  practice  of  nations  has  been  so  different  in  dif- 
ferent cases,  that  it  seems  impossible  to  deduce  any  general  rule  of 
action  from  it.  That  a  nation  whose  subjects  or  citizens  had  as- 
certained the  existence  of  a  country  previously  unknown,  should 
have  a  better  right  than  any  other  to  make  settlements  in  that  coun- 
try, and,  after  such  settlement,  to  own  it,  and  to  exercise  sovereignty 
over  it,  is  in  every  respect  conformable  with  nature  and  justice ;  but 
this  principle  is  liable  to  innumerable  difficulties  in  its  application  to 
particular  cases.  It  is  seldom  easy  to  decide  how  far  a  discovery 
may  have  been  such,  in  all  respects,  as  should  give  this  strongest 
right  to  settle,  or  to  what  extent  of  country  a  title  of  sovereignty 
may  have  been  acquired  by  a  particular  settlement :  and  even  where 
the  novelty  or  priority  and  sufficiency  of  the  discovery  are  admit- 


1789.] 


NEW  EXPEDITION  FROM  MACAO. 


189 


ted,  the  nght  to  occupy  thus  derived  cannot  surely  be  regarded  as 
subsisting  forever,  to  the  exclusion  of  all  other  nations ;  and  the 
claims  of  states  already  occupying  contiguous  territories  are  always 
to  be  taken  into  consideration. 

Agreeably  to  these  views,  it  could  not  with  justice  be  assumed 
that  Spain,  from  the  mere  fact  of  the  first  discovery  of  the  north- 
west coasts  of  America  by  her  subjects,  acquired  the  right  to 
exclude  all  other  nations  from  them  forever ;  but  it  would  be  most 
unjust  to  deny  that  her  right  to  occupy  those  vacant  territories, 
contiguous  as  they  were  to  her  settled  dominions,  even  if  they  had 
not  been  first  discovered  by  her  subjects,  was  much  stronger  than 
that  of  any  other  nation.  Thus  the  occupation,  and  even  the 
exploration,  of  any  part  of  the  north-west  coasts  by  another  power, 
might  have  been  reasonably  considered  by  Cpain  as  an  unfriendly, 
if  not  as  an  offensive,  act ;  while  she  might,  on  the  contrary,  have 
extended  her  establishments  at  least  as  far  north  as  the  56th  parallel, 
and  have  claimed  the  exclusive  right  to  occupy  all  the  coasts  south 
of  her  most  northern  establishment,  without  giving  just  cause  of 
dissatisfisiction  to  any  other  power.  The  right  to  occupy  must  be 
here  distinguished  from  the  right  of  sovereigniy ;  as  no  nation  could 
be  justified,  by  virtue  .of  the  former  right,  and  without  occupation 
or  the  performance  of  acts  indicating  an  intention  soon  to  occupy, 
in  depriving  others  of  the  trade  of  extensive  vacant  sea-coasts,  un- 
less upon  the  ground  that  the  exercise  of  such  trade  would  be 
injurious  to  its  actual  interest:  in  those  countries. 

Resuming  the  narrative  of  events  in  the  North  Pacific  —  It  has 
been  mentioned,  in  the  preceding  chapter,  that  Meares  sailed  in  the 
Felice  from  Nootka  Sound  to  China,  in  the  end  of  September, 
1789.  On  reaching  Macao,  in  December  following,  he  learned  that 
during  his  absence,  Juan  Cavallo,  the  Portuguese  merchant,  whose 
name  appeared  on  the  papers  of  the  Felice  and  Iphigenia  as  their 
owner,  had  become  a  bankrupt.  What  steps  were  taken  immediate- 
ly, in  consequence  of  this  event,  is  not  related ;  but  an  arrangement 
was  soon  after  made  between  the  anonymous  merchant  proprietors 
and  Mr.  Etches,  the  agent  of  the  King  George's  Sound  Company, 
who  was  then  at  Macao,  with  the  ship  Prince  of  Wales  and  sloop 
Princess  Royal,  for  a  union  of  the  interests  of  the  two  parties. 
Agreeably  to  this  arrangement,  the  Felice  was  sold,  and  the  Prince 
of  Wales  returned  to  England ;  and  a  ship  called  the  Argonaut  was 
purchased,  in  which  Colnett,  a  lieutenant  in  the  British  navy,  previ- 
ously commanding  the  Princess  Royal,  was  despatched,  in  April, 


190 


NEW  EXPEDITION  FROM  MACAO. 


[1789. 


I 


!i;'. 


1789,  to  Nootka,  as  captain,  and  agent  for  the  proprietors  on  the 
American  coast,  accompanied  by  the  Princess  Royal,  under  Captain 
William  Hudson. 

The  management  of  the  affairs  of  the  association  at  Macao  ap- 
pears to  have  been  committed  entirely  to  Meares,  who  drew  up  the 
instructions  for  Colnett.  From  these  instructions,  of  which  a  copy 
is  appended  by  Meares  to  his  Memorial,  it  is  evident  that  there  was 
really  an  intention  to  found  a  permanent  establishment  on  some 
part  of  the  north-west  coast  of  America,  although  no  spot  is  desig- 
nated as  its  site,  and  no  hint  is  given  of  any  acquisition  of  territory 
having  been  already  made  at  or  near  Nootka  Sound.  Indeed,  the 
only  reference  to  that  place,  in  the  whole  paper,  is  contained  in  the 
words,  "  We  recommend  you,  if  possible,  to  form  a  treaty  with  the 
various  chiefs,  particularly  at  Nootka."  Yet  Meares,  in  his  Memo- 
rial, strangely  enough  says,  "  Mr.  Colnett  was  directed  to  fix  his 
residence  at  Nootka  Sound,  and,  with  that  view,  to  erect  a  substan- 
tial house  on  the  spot  which  your  memorialist  had  purchased  in  the 
preceding  year,  as  will  appear  by  a  copy  of  his  instructions  hereunto 
annexed."  The  Argonaut  and  Princess  Royal  were,  moreover, 
certainly  navigated  under  the  British  flag ;  there  being  no  object  in 
using  any  other,  as  they  were  both  provided  with  licenses  from  the 
East  India  and  the  South  Sea  Companies,  which  aflbrded  them  the 
requisite  authorization.^ 

Whilst  these  vessels  were  on  their  way  to  Nootka  Sound,  their 
first  place  of  destination  on  the  coast,  the  brig  Iphigenia,  and 
schooner  North- West  America,  belonging  to  the  same  association, 
though  under  Portuguese  colors,  arrived  in  that  bay  from  the 
Sandwich  Islands,  where  they  had  passed  the  winter,  agreeably  to 
the  instructions  of  Mr.  Meares.  They  entered  the  sound  on  the 
20th  of  April,  in  the  most  wretched  condition  imaginable.  The 
Iphigenia  was  a  mere  wreck ;  according  to  the  journal  of  Douglas, 
her  supercargo  or  captain,  annexed  to  the  Memorial  of  Meares, 

"  The  following  account  of  the  occurrences  at  Nootka  in  the  summer  of  1789  is 
taken  from  —  the  journal  or  narrative  of  the  voyage  of  Meares,  and  the  documents 
attached  to  it,  consisting  of  his  Memorial  to  Parliament,  and  papers  in  proof,  among 
which  is  especially  worthy  of  notice  the  journal  of  Douglas,  the  captain  or  supercargo 
of  the  Iphigenia — the  journal  of  Colnett 's  voyage,  in  1793,  in  which  some  of  those 
circumstances  are  related  in  a  note,  at  page  96  —  the  journal  of  Vancouver's  voyage 
in  1792 — the  letter  addressed  by  the  American  Captains  Gray  and  Ingraham  to  the 
Spanish  commandant  at  Nootka,  in  1792,  which  will  be  found  at  length  among  the 
Proofs  and  Illustrations,  at  the  end  of  this  volume,  under  the  letter  C  —  and  the 
memorials  and  other  papers  relative  to  the  dispute  which  ensued  between  Great 
Britain,  in  the  Proofs  and  Illustrations,  under  the  letter  D. 


[1789. 


1789.] 


SEIZURE    OF    THE    IPHIOENIA. 


m 


of  1789  is 

documents 

of,  among 

upercargo 

of  those 
8  voyage 
am  to  the 
mong  the 

and  the 
len  Great 


"  she  had  like  to  have  foundered  at  sea,  for  want  of  pitch  and  tar 
to  stop  the  leaks ;  she  had  no  bread  on  board,  and  nothing  but  salt 
pork  for  her  crew  to  live  on ;  she  was  without  cables,"  and,  on 
attempting  to  moor  her  in  the  harbor,  it  was  necessary  to  "  borrow 
a  fall  from  the  American  sloop  Washington,"  which,  with  the  ship 
Columbia,  was  found  lying  there.  The  North- West  America  was 
in  no  better  condition ;  and,  as  they  had  no  articles  for  barter  with 
the  natives,  they  must  have  remained  inactive  for  some  time,  had 
they  not  procured  some  assistance  and  supplies  from  the  American 
vessels,  by  means  of  which  the  schooner  was  enabled  to  leave  the 
sound  on  the  28th  of  the  month,  for  a  short  trading  trip  along  the 
cuasts.  The  Washington,  about  the  same  time,  also  departed  on  a 
similar  expedition ;  and  the  Iphigenia,  lying  at  Friendly  Cove,  and 
the  Columbia,  at  Mawhinna,  a  few  miles  higher  up,  were  the  only 
vessels  in  Nootka  Sound  on  the  6th  of  May,  when  the  Spanish 
commander  Martinez  arrived  there  in  the  corvette  Princesa,  to  take 
possession  of  the  country  for  his  sovereign. 

Martinez  immediately  communicated  his  intentions  to  the  captains 
of  the  other  vessels,  whose  papers  he  also  examined ;  and,  appear- 
ing to  be  content,  he  landed  materials  and  artillery,  and  began  to 
erect  a  fort  on  a  small  island  at  the  entrance  of  Friendly  Cove. 
With  this  assumption  of  authority  on  his  part,  no  dissatisfaction 
appears  to  have  been  expressed  or  entertained  by  either  of  the  other 
parties ;  on  the  contrary,  the  utmost  good  feeling  for  some  time 
prevailed  on  all  sides :  the  officers  of  the  different  vessels  visited 
and  dined  with  each  other,  and  Martinez  readily  supplied  the 
Iphigenia  with  articles  of  which  she  was  in  need,  in  order  to  go  to 
sea  immediately,  accepting,  in  return  for  them,  bills  drawn  by  her 
Portuguese  captain,  Viana,  upon  Juan  Cavallo,  the  Portuguese 
merchant  of  Macao,  as  her  owner. 

Things  remained  thus  at  Nootka  for  a  week,  at  the  end  of  which 
time  the  other  Spanish  vessel,  the  San  Carlos,  arrived,  under 
Captain  Haro.  On  the  following  day,  the  15th  of  May,  Martinez 
invited  Viana  and  Douglas  to  come  on  board  his  ship;  and,  on 
their  doing  so,  he  immediately  told  them  that  they  were  prisoners, 
and  their  vessel  was  to  be  seized.  "  I  inquired,"  says  Douglas,  in 
his  journal,  "  the  cause  of  his  not  taking  the  Washington  sloop,  as  he 
had  orders  from  the  king  of  Spain  to  take  every  vessel  he  met  out 
on  this  coast.  He  gave  mo  no  satisfactory  answer,  but  told  me  my 
papers  were  bad ;  that  they  mentioned  I  was  to  take  all  EngUsh, 
Russian,  and  Spanish  vessels  that  were  of  inferior  force  to  the 


rr^l 


t    ' 

n 

j.  t  J  ■  1 

4 

1 

i 

nyi^ii 

193 


THE    IPHIGENIA   RELEASED   BT   MARTINEZ. 


[1789. 


Iphigenia,  and  send  or  carry  their  crews  to  Macao,  there  to  be  tried 
for  their  lives  as  pirates.  I  told  him  they  had  not  interpreted  the 
papers  right ;  that,  though  I  did  not  understand  the  Portuguese,  I 
had  seen  a  copy  oftJiem  in  English,  at  Macao,  which  mentioned,  if 
I  was  attacked  by  any  one  of  those  nations,  to  defend  myself,  and, 
if  I  had  the  superiority,  to  send  the  captains  and  crews  to  Macao, 
to  answer  for  the  insult  they  had  offered."  Martinez,  however, 
was  not,  or  did  not  choose  to  be,  content  with  this  explanation, 
which  certainly  did  not  place  the  Iphigenia  and  her  owners  in  a 
position  conformable  with  the  usages  of  civilized  nations ;  and,  in 
obedience  to  his  orders,  that  brig  was  boarded  by  the  Spaniards,  her 
men,  with  her  charts,  papers,  and  instruments,  were  transferred  to 
the  ships  of  war,  and  preparations  were  begun  for  sending  her,  as  a 
prize,  to  San  Bias. 

Whilst  these  preparations  were  in  progress,  the  Spanish  com- 
mandant altered  his  intentions,  and  proposed  to  release  the  Iphigenia 
and  her  crew,  on  condition  that  her  officers  would  sign  a  declaration 
to  the  effect  that  she  had  not  been  interrupted,  but '  -d  been  kindly 
treated  and  supplied  by  him  during  her  stay  at  ^.ootka.  This 
proposition  was  at  first  refused;  an  arrangement  was,  however, 
afterwards  made  between  the  parties,  in  consequence  of  which  the 
declaration  was  signed  by  the  officers  of  the  Iphigenia,  and  she  and 
her  crew  were  liberated  on  the  26th  of  May.  Messrs.  Viana  and 
Douglas  at  the  same  time  engaged  for  themselves,  as  "  captain  and 
supercargo  respectively,  and  for  Juan  Cavallo,  of  Macao,  as  owner 
of  the  said  vessel,'^  to  pay  her  value,  on  demand,  to  the  order  of  the 
viceroy  of  Mexico,  in  case  he  should  pronounce  her  capture  legal. 

This  seizure  of  the  Iphigenia  by  Martinez  can  scarcely  be  con- 
sidered unjust  or  unmerited,  when  it  is  recdlected  that,  if,  in 
attempting  to  enforce,  with  regard  to  her,  the  orders  of  his  govern- 
ment,— which  were  perfectly  conformable  with  the  principles  of 
national  law  as  then  recognized,  and  with  treaties  between  Spain 
and  the  other  powers,  —  he  had  been  resisted  and  overcome,  he, 
with  his  officers  and  men,  would  have  been  carried  to  Macao  as 
prisoners,  to  be  tried  in  Portuguese  courts  for  piracy.  Moreover, 
he  had  been  informed  that  Meares  was  daily  expected  to  arrive  at 
Nootka,  with  other  vessels  belonging  to  the  same  concern ;  and  it 
was  his  duty  to  provide  against  the  probabihty  of  being  overpowered 
or  insulted,  by  lessening  the  forces  of  those  from  whom  he  had 
every  reason  to  apprehend  an  attack.  He  was,  indeed,  specially 
enjoined,  by  the  viceroy  of  Mexico,  to  treat  English  and  Russian 


1789.] 


THE    IPHIGENIA   BETURNS   TO   CHINA. 


193 


vessels  with  respect ;  but  the  contingency  of  his  meeting  with  a 
Portuguese  vessel  at  Nootka,  furnished  with  such  instructions  as 
those  carried  by  the  Iphigenia,  could  not  have  been  foreseen ;  and 
the  only  grounds  upon  which  he  could  have  excused  himself  to  his 
government  for  releasing  her,  even  under  the  pledge  given  by 
her  officers,  must  have  been,  that,  at  the  time  when  those  instruc- 
tions were  written,  it  was  not  anticipated,  by  her  proprietors,,  that 
Spain  would  take  possecjion  of  any  place  on  the  north-west  coast 
of  America. 

That  the  detention  of  the  Iphigenia  by  the  Spaniards  was  not 
injurious  to  the  interests  of  her  owners,  is  clearly  proved.  The 
distressed  condition  in  which  she  reached  Nootka  has  been  already 
shown  from  the  accounts  of  her  officers;  and  she  must  have 
remained  at  that  place,  unemployed,  during  the  greater  and  better 
part  of  the  trading  season,  had  she  not  been  refitted  and  supplied 
OS  she  was  by  the  Spaniards.  According  to  the  narrative  of  Meares, 
she  sailed  from  the  sound  on  the  1st  of  June,  to  the  coasts  of  Queen 
Charlotte's  Island,  where  she  collected  a  number  of  valuable  furs 
in  a  few  weeks :  the  trade  was  "  so  brisk,"  writes  Meares,  "  that 
all  the  stock  of  iron  was  soon  expended,  and  they  were  under  the 
necessity  of  cutting  up  the  chain  plates  and  hatch-bars  of  the  vessel" 
in  order  to  find  the  means  of  purchasing  the  skins  offisred ;  thence 
she  departed  for  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and,  after  a  short  stay  there, 
continued  her  voyage  to  Macao,  where  she  arrived  in  October,  with 
about  seven  hundred  sea  otter  skins,  all  collected  since  leaving  Nootka 
Sound.  Mr.  Meares,  in  his  Memorial,  however,  presents  a  very 
different  picture  of  these  circumstances:  he  there  says,  "During 
the  time  the  Spaniards  held  possession  of  the  Iphigenia,  she  was 
stripped  of  all  the  merchandise  which  had  been  prepared  for  trading, 
as  also  of  her  stores,  provisions,  nautical  instruments,  charts,  &c., 
and,  in  short,  of  every  article,  except  twelve  bars  of  iron,  which  they 
could  conveniently  carry  away,  even  to  the  extent  of  the  master's 
watch,  and  articles  of  clothing ; "  he  then  goes  on  to  state  that, 
"on  leaving  Nootka  Sound,  the  Iphigenia,  though  in  a  very  unfit 
condition  for  such  a  voyage,  proceeded  from  thence  to  the  Sandwich 
Islands,  and,  after  obtaining  there  such  supplies  as  they  were 
enabled  to  purchase  with  the  iron  before  mentioned,  returned  to 
China,  and  anchored  there  in  the  month  of  October,  1789"  —  thus 
omitting  all  notice  of  the  trip  to  the  northern  coasts,  and  of  the 
Itrisk  trade  with  the  natives,  in  which  the  whole  stock  of  iron 
25 


■  i.R. 


*fi 


194 


.1. 


HP    J 


^J 


1 :? 


mth     ■ 


■it     it 


SEliStfRE   or   I'BE   NORTH-WEST    AMERICA. 


[1789. 


(indading,  of  course,  the  twelve  bars  before  mentioned)  was  ex- 
changed f6r  furs. 

Before  taking  leave  of  the  Iphigenia,  it  may  be  added,  in  evi- 
dence of  her  true  character,  that  Douglas  quitted  her  immediately 
on  her  arrival  in  China ;  after  which  she  continued  to  trade  under 
the  command  of  Viana,  and  under  the  flag  of  Portugal. 

On  the  8th  of  June,  after  the  departure  of  the  Iphigenia,  the 
schooner  North- West  America  returned  from  her  voyage  along  the 
southern  coasts,  in  which  she  had  collected  about  two  hundred  sea 
otter  skins,  and  was  immediately  seized  by  Martinez,  in  consequence, 
as  he  at  first  said,  of  an  agreement  to  that  effect  between  himself 
and  the  captain  of  the  Iphigenia.  This  agreement  is  expressly  de- 
nied by  Douglas,  who  declares  that  both  promises  and  threats  had 
been  used  m  vain  to  induce  him  to  sell  the  small  vessel  at  a  price 
far  below  her  real  value ;  and,  in  proof,  he  cites  a  letter  given  by 
him  to  Martinez,  addressed  to  the  captain  of  the  North- West  Amer- 
ica, in  which  he  merely  tells  the  latter  to  act  as  he  may  think  best 
for  the  interest  of  the  owners.  Meares,  in  his  Memorial,  however, 
admits  that  the  letter  did  not  contain  what  Martinez  understood  to  be 
its  purport  when  he  received  it,  and  that  advantage  had  been  taken 
by  Douglas  of  the  Spaniard's  ignorance  of  the  English  language ; 
from  which  circumstances  it  is  most  probable  that  the  agreement, 
whether  voluntary  on  the  part  of  the  captain  of  the  Iphigenia,  or 
unjustly  extorted  from  him,  was  actually  made  as  asserted  by  Marti- 
nez. A  few  days  afterwards,  the  sloop  Princess  Royal,  one  of  the 
yesselis  sent  from  Macao  by  the  associated  companies,  entered  the 
sound  under  the  command  of  William  Hudson,  bringing  infor- 
mation of  the  failure  of  Cavallo,  the  Portuguese  merchant,  upon 
whom,  as  owner  of  the  Iphigenia,  the  bills  in  payment  for  the  sup- 
plies furnished  to  that  vessel,  were  drawn.  Upon  learning  this, 
Martinez  announced  his  determination  to  hold  the  North-West 
America  in  satisfaction  for  the  amount  of  those  bills:  she  was 
thereupon  inunediately  equipped  for  a  trading  voyage,  and  sent  out 
under  the  command  of  one  of  the  mates  of  the  Columbia ;  but  her 
officers  and  men  were  at  the  same  time  liberated,  and  nearly  all  the 
skins  collected  by  her  were  placed  on  board  the  Princess  Royal,  for 
the  benefit  of  the  owners  in  China. 

The  Princess  Royal  remained  at  Nootka  until  the  2d  of  July, 
during  which  period  she  was  undisturbed,  and  her  officers  and 
men  were  treated  with  perfect  civility  and  respect  by  the  Span- 


1789.] 


SEIZURB    or   THS   AKGONAVT   AT   NOOTKA. 


196 


iards.  As  she  was  leaving  the  sound  on  that  day,  her  c^wiOKt,  the 
ship  Argonaut,  came  in  from  Macao,  under  Captain  Colnett^  who,  a* 
already  mentioned,  had  been  charged  by  the  associated  conapaoies 
with  the  direction  of  their  affairs  on  the  American  coasts,  and  the 
estabhshment  of  a  factory  and  fort  for  their  benefit.  What  foUowed 
with  regard  to  this  ship  has  been  represented  under  vacious  colors ; 
but  the  principal  facts,  as  generally  admitted,  were  these :  —  Ht-A"^ 

As  soon  as  the  Argonaut  appeared  at  the  entrance  of  the  sound, 
she  was  boarded  by  Martinez,  who  presented  to  Colnett  a  letter 
from  the  captain  of  the  Princess  Royal,  and  pressed  him  earnestly 
to  enter  the  sound,  and  supply  the  Spanish  vessels  with  some  ar^ 
cles  of  which  they  were  much  in  want.  Several  of  the  officers  of 
the  North- West  America  and  the  Columbia  also  came  on  board  the 
Argonaut,  and  communicated  what  had  occurred  respecting  the 
Iphigenia  and  the  small  vessel  to  Colnett,  who,  in  consequence,  hes- 
itated as  to  entering  the  sound  ;  but  he  was  finally  iiHluced,  by  the 
assurances  of  Martinez,  to  do  so,  and  before  midnight  his  ship 
was  anchored  in  Friendly  Cove,  between  the  Princesa  and  the  San 
Carlos. 

On  the  following  day,  Colnett,  having  supplied  the  Spanish  ships 
with  some  articles,  was  preparing,  as  he  states,  to  leave  the  sound, 
when  he  received  an  invitation  to  go  on  board  the  commandant's 
ship  and  exhibit  his  papers.  He  accordingly  went,  in  uniform,  and 
with  his  sword  by  his  side,  into  the  cabin  of  the  Princesa,  where  he 
displayed  his  papers,  and  informed  Martinez  of  his  intention  to  take 
possession  of  Nootka,  and  erect  a  fort  there  under  the  British  flag. 
The  commandant  replied,  that  this  could  not  be  done,  as  the  place 
was  already  occupied  by  the  forces  an  '  in  the  name  of  his  Catholic 
majesty ;  and  an  altercation  ensued,  the  results  of  which  M^ere  the 
arrest  and  confinement  of  Colnett,  and  the  seizure  of  the  Argonaut 
by  ilic  Spaniards.  From  the  moment  of  his  arrest,  Colnett  became 
insane  or  delirious,  and  continued  in  this  state  for  several  weeks, 
during  which  Duffin,  the  mate  of  his  vessel,  acted  as  the  representa- 
tive of  the  proprietors :  in  the  mean  time,  her  cargo  had  been  all 
placed  on  board  the  Spanish  ships  of  war ;  and,  on  the  13th  of 
July,  she  sailed,  with  her  officers  and  nearly  the  whole  of  her  crew  as 
prisoners,  under  the  command  of  a  Spanish  lieutenant,  for  San  Bias. 

If  the  accounts  of  these  transactions,  presented  by  Meares  in  his 
Memorial,  and  by  Colnett  in  the  narrative  which  he  afterwards 
published,  be  admitted  as  conveying  a  full  and  correct  view  of  the 


i 


Ml 


ii. 


'':^ 


m 


8XIZURE  or  THE  ARGONAUT  AT  NOOTKA. 


[1789. 


circumitances,  the  conduct  of  Martinez  must  be  considered  as  nearly 
equivalent  to  piracy.  From  these  accounts  it  would  appear  that  the 
ship  was  treacherously  seized,  without  any  reasonable  ground,  or 
even  pretext,  and  with  the  sole  premeditated  object  of  plundering 
her ;  and  that  the  most  cruel  acts  of  violence,  insult,  and  restraint, 
were  wantonly  committed  upon  the  officers  and  men  during  the 
whole  period  of  their  imprisonment.  Colnett  relates  *  —  that,  when 
he  presented  his  papers  to  Martinez  in  the  cabin  of  the  Priiicesa, 
the  commandant,  without  examining  them,  pronounced  them  to  be 
forged,  and  immediately  declared  that  the  Argonaut  should  not  go 
to  sea  —  that,  upon  his  ''  remonstrating  [in  what  terms  he  does  not 
say]  against  this  breach  of  good  faith,  and  forgetfulness  of  word 
and  honor  pledged,"  the  Spaniard  rose,  in  apparent  anger,  and 
introduced  a  party  of  armed  men,  by  whom  he  was  struck  down, 
placed  in  the  stocks,  and  then  closely  confin'^d  —  that  he  was  after- 
wards carried  from  ship  to  ship  like  a  criminal,  threatened  with 
instant  execution  as  a  pirate,  and  subjected  to  so  many  injuries  and 
indignities  as  to  tJirow  him  into  a  violent  fever  and  delirium,  which 
were  near  proving  fatal  —  and  that  his  officers  and  men  were  impris- 
oned and  kept  in  irons  from  the  time  of  their  seizure  until  their 
arrival  at  San  Bias,  where  many  of  them  died  in  consequence  of  ill 
treatment.  Meares,  in  his  Memorial,  makes  the  same  assertions, 
many  of  which  are  supported  by  the  deposition  of  the  officers  and 
seamen  of  the  North- West  America,  taken  in  China,  and  appended 
to  the  Memorial.  On  the  other  hand,  Gray,  the  captain  of  the 
Washington,  and  Ingraham,  the  mate  of  the  Columbia,  both  of 
whom  were  at  Nootka  during  the  occurrence  of  the  affair,  "  were 
informed  by  those  whose  veracity  they  had  no  reason  to  doubt,"  f 
that  Colnett,  in  his  interview  with  Martinez  on  board  the  Princesa, 
denied  the  right  of  the  Spaniards  to  occupy  Nootka,  and  endeav- 
ored to  impose  upon  the  Spanish  commandant,  by  representing 
himself  as  acting  under  direct  orders  from  the  British  government ; 
and  that  he  afterwards  insulted  the  Spaniard  by  threatening  him 
and  drawing  his  sword.  Colnett  himself  says  that  he  attempted  to 
draw  his  sword  on  the  occasion,  but  that  it  was  in  defence  against 
those  who  assailed  him ;  and  it  must  be  allowed  to  be  very  difficult  to 
*' remonstrate  "  with  a  man  upon  "  his  breach  of  faith,  and  forgetful- 

*  Account  of  his  Voyage  in  the  Pacific  in  1793,  note  at  p.  96 ;  also  Vancouver's 
Journal,  vol.  iii.  p.  492.    These  two  accounts  difTcr  in  some  points. 
t  Letter  of  Gray  and  Ingraham,  in  the  Proofs  and  IlluBtrations,  letter  C. 


V 


[1789. 

as  nearly 

r  that  the 

round,  or 

lundering 
restraint, 

uring  the 

hat,  when 
Princesa, 

lem  to  be 

uld  not  go 

e  does  not 

<8S  of  word 

anger,  and 

uck  down, 

3  wasafter- 

itened  with 

injuries  and 

rium,  which 

ivere  impris- 

I  until  their 

[uence  of  ill 

e  assertions, 
officers  and 

id  appended 
tain  of  the 
lia,  both  of 

[flfair,  "were 
to  doubt,"  t 

[he  Princesa, 
ind  endeav- 
representing 
government ; 
iatening  him 
ittempted  to 
fence  against 
jry  difficult  to 
md  forgetful- 

Llso  Vancouver's 
[,  letter  C 


1789.] 


SEIZURE   or   THE    ARGONAUT. 


107 


ne$s  offtis  word  and  honor  pledged,"  without  insulting  him.  Duffin, 
the  mate  of  the  Argonaut,  writing  to  Mearea  from  Nootka,  ten  days 
after  the  seizi  of  the  ship,  gives  nearly  the  same  account  oi  tho 
iiiterview,  adding  that  the  misunderstanding  was  probably  occa- 
sioned by  the  interpreter's  ignorance  of  the  English  language :  he 
says  that  Martinez  appeared  to  be  very  sorry  for  what  had  hap- 
pened; and  had  "  behaved  with  great  civility,  by  obliging  his  pris- 
oners with  every  liberty  that  could  be  expected ; "  and  he  com- 
plains of  no  violence,  either  to  the  feelings  or  to  the  persons  of  any 
of  the  crews,  of  the  vessels  seized,  although  he  charges  the  Span- 
iards with  plundering  both  openly  and  secretly.  Moreover,  Duffin 
declares,  and  Meares  repeats,  in  his  Memorial,  that  the  disease  with 
which  Colnett  was  afflicted  after  his  arrest  was  a  fit  of  insanity,  oc- 
casioned by  fear  and  disappointment  operating  upon  a  mind  natu- 
rally weak  and  hereditarily  predisposed  to  such  alienation. 

On  the  part  of  Spain,  the  only  statements  which  have  been  pub- 
licly made  are  those  contained  in  the  notes  and  memorials  ad- 
dressed by  the  court  of  Madrid  to  other  governments  in  1790 ;  and 
in  the  Introduction  to  the  Journal  of  Galiano  and  Valdes  —  all  of 
which,  though  officially  presented,  are  nevertheless  imperfect  and 
evidently  erroneous  on  several  important  points.* 

Upon  reviewing  the  circumstances  of  the  affair,  there  appears 
to  be  no  reason  to  doubt  that  Colnett  entered  the  sound,  relying  on 
the  assurances  of  Martinez,  that  he  should  be  undisturbed  while 

*  These  notes  and  memorials,  which  will  be  montioned  more  particularly  hereafter, 
may  be  found  in  the  Proofs  and  Illustrations,  under  the  letter  D.  All  that  is  said 
in  the  Introduction  to  the  Journal  of  Galiano  and  Valdes  respecting  the  dispute,  or 
the  circumstances  which  led  to  it,  is  contained  in  the  paragraph  of  which  the 
following  is  a  translation :  — 

"  On  the  2d  of  July,  the  English  ship  Argonaut,  which  had  been  sent  by  an  Eng- 
lish company  from  Macao,  entered  the  port.  Her  captain,  James  Colnett,  came,  with 
authority  from  the  king  of  England,  to  take  possession  of  the  port  of  Nootka,  to  for- 
tify it,  and  to  establish  there  a  factory  fo"  the  collectiou  of  sea  otter  skins,  and  to 
prevent  other  nations  from  engaging  in  this  trade,  with  which  objects  he  was  to  build 
a  large  ship  and  a  schooner.  This  manifest  infraction  of  the  'ights  over  that  region 
led  to  a  serious  quarrel  between  the  Spanish  commandant  and  the  English  captain, 
which  extended  to  Europe ;  and,  the  two  powers  being  alarmed,  the  world  was  for 
some  time  threatened  with  war  and  devastation,  the  results  of  discord.  Captain  Col- 
nett  refused,  repeatedly  and  obstinately,  to  exhibit  to  Martinez  the  instructions  which 
he  brought ;  and  he  expressed  himself  in  language  so  indecorous  and  irritating,  that 
our  commandant,  having  exhausted  all  the  measures  of  prudence  which  he  had  hith- 
erto employed,  resolved  to  arrest  the  British  captain  in  the  cabin  of  his  ship,  and  to 
declare  all  the  persons  on  board  the  Argonaut  prisoners  of  war,  and  to  send  them  to 
San  Bias,  to  be  there  placed  at  the  disposition  of  the  viceroy  of  Mexico." 


i  il 


199 


SEIZURE   Oi    THC    PRINCESS   ROYAL. 


[1789. 


ii;:  -ji 


■•) 


■:%       'Sf 


1 

ii 

■ 

1 

there,  and  be  allowed  to  depart  at  his  pleasure ;  and  it  seems  to  be 
equally  certain  that  the  English  captain  did  afterwards  conduct 
himself  with  so  much  violence  and  extravagance  towards  the  Span- 
ish commandant,  as  to  render  his  own  arrest  perfectly  justifiable. 
Tlie  seizure  of  the  Argonaut,  tlie  imprisonment  of  her  other  officers 
and  crew,  and  the  spoliation  of  her  cargo,  cannot,  however,  be 
defended  on  those  or  on  any  grounds  afforded  by  the  evidence  of  any 
of  the  parties ;  for  Martinez  had  no  reason  to  apprehend  an  attack 
from  the  Argonaut,  and  he  had  been  specially  instructed,  by  his 
immediate  superior,  the  viceroy  of  Mexico,  to  suspend,  with  regard 
to  British  vessels  on  the  north-west  coasts,  the  execution  of  the 
general  orders  to  Spanish  commandants,  for  the  seizure  of  foreign 
vessels  entering  the  ports  of  the  American  dominions. 

Stiil  less  excusable  was  the  conduct  of  Martinez  towards  the  sloop 
Princess  Royal,  on  her  second  arrival  at  Nootka.  She  appeared  at 
the  entrance  of  the  sound  on  the  13th  of  July,  having  made  u  short 
trading  cruise  along  the  northern  coasts ;  and  her  captain.  Hudson, 
on  coming  up  to  Friendly  Cove  in  a  boat,  was  arrested,  aft'^i  which 
his  vessel  was  boarded  and  brought  in  as  a  prize  by  a  party  of 
Spaniards  despatched  for  the  purpose.  On  the  following  day,  the 
majority  of  her  crew  were  transferred  to  the  Argonaut,  which 
carried  them  as  prisoners  to  San  Bias ;  her  cargo  was  then  taken 
out,  and  she  was  herself  afterwards  employe.?  for  nearly  two  years 
in  the  Spanish  service,  under  Lieutenant  Quifnper. 

The  schooner  North- West  America  was  also  retained  in  the 
national  service  of  Spain ;  her  officers  and  men,  with  some  of 
those  of  the  Argonaut  and  Princess  Royal,  were,  however,  placed 
on  board  the  American  ship  Columbia,  to  be  carried  as  passengers 
to  China,  one  hundred  of  the  sea  otter  skins  found  in  the  Princess 
Royal  being  allowed  in  payment  of  their  wages  and  transportation. 
Martinez  remained  at  Nootka  until  November,  when  he  departed, 
with  his  three  vessels,  for  San  Bias,  agreeably  to  orders  received  by 
him  from  Mexico. 

The  Columbia  had  remained  in  the  sound  ever  since  her  first 
arrival  there,  in  October,  1788;  the  Washington  being,  in  the  mean 
time,  engaged  in  trading  along  the  coasts  north  and  south  of  that 
place,  to  which  she,  however,  frequently  returned,  in  order  to 
deposit  the  furs  collected.  The  officers  of  these  vessels  were  thus 
witnesses  of  nearly  all  the  occurrences  at  Nootka  during  the  summer 
of  1789,  in  which,  indeed,  they  frequently  took  part  as  mediators; 


1789.] 


CONDUCT   or   THE   AMKRIOANS    AT   NOOTKA. 


199 


and  the  only  evidence,  with  regard  to  those  events,  except  the 
journal  of  Douglas,  which  can  bear  the  test  of  strict  examination,  is 
contained  in  a  letter  addressed,  three  years  afterwards,  to  the 
Spanish  commandant  of  Nootka,  by  Gray,  the  captain  of  the 
Washington,  and  Ingraham,  the  mate  of  the  Columbia.*  Meares 
and  Colnett  endeavor  to  cast  blame  on  the  Americans  for  their 
conduct  in  these  proceedings ;  their  complaints,  however,  on  exam- 
ination, seem  to  rest  entirely  on  the  fact  that  the  Washington  and 
Columbia  were  undisturbed,  while  their  own  vessels  were  seized  by 
the  Spaniards.  That  Gray  and  Kendrick  profited  by  the  quarrels 
between  the  other  two  parties  is  probable,  and  no  one  can  question 
their  right  to  do  so ;  but  no  evidence  has  been  adduced  that  they,  on 
any  occasion,  took  an  unfair  advantage  of  either :  though  it  is  also 
probable  that  their  feelings  were  rather  in  favor  of  the  Spaniards, 
by  whom  they  were  always  treated  with  courtesy  and  kindness, 
than  of  the  British,  to  whom,  if  we  are  to  judge  by  the  expressions 
of  Meares  and  Colnett,  they  were,  from  the  commencement,  the 
objects  of  hatred  and  ridicule. 

In  one  of  the  above-mentioned  trading  excursions  of  the  Wash- 
ington, made  in  June,  1789,  Gray  explored  the  whole  east  coast  of 
Queen  Charlotte's  Island,  which  had  never  before  been  visited  by 
the  people  of  any  civilized  nation,  though  Duncan,  in  the  Princess 
Royal,  had,  in  the  preceding  year,  sailed  through  the  sea  separating 
it  from  the  main  land  and  other  islands.  The  American,  being 
ignorant  of  this  fact,  as  also  of  the  name  bestowed  on  the  territory 
by  Dixon,  called  it  Washington's  Island;  and  thus  it  was,  for  a 
long  period,  always  distinguished  by  the  fur  traders  of  the  United 
States.  Meares  endeavors,  in  his  narrative,  to  secure  to  Douglas, 
the  captain  of  the  Iphigenia,  the  merit  of  having  first  established 
the  insulation  of  the  territory;  though  Douglas,  in  his  journal 
annexed  to  that  narrative,  expressly  alludes  to  the  previous  visits 
of  the  Washington  to  many  places  on  the  east  coast.  The  assertion 
of  this  claim  for  Douglas  was  one  of  the  causes  of  the  dispute 
between  Meares  and  Dixon,  in  1791,  which  will  be  hereafter  men- 
tioned more  particularly. 

In  a  subsequent  excursion  from  Nootka,  Gray  entered  the  opening 
south-east  of  that  place,  between  the  48th  and  49th  parallels  of 
latitude,  which  had  been  found  by  Berkely  in  1787,  and  was  sup- 
posed to  be  the  mouth  of  the  Strait  of  Juan  de  Fuca.    Through 


,■  m 


*  ■    ^'■■>ii, 


See  Proofs  and  IIlustrationB,  under  the  letter  D. 


900 


MBLBAIB    or    COLNETT. 


[1789. 


r:   I    ' 


ill 


thii  opening  Gray  sailed,  ai  he  informed  Vancouver  in  1792,  «  fifty 
miles  in  an  cv^t-iouth-east  direction,  and  found  the  panage  five 
leagues  wide."  He  then  retu.r^u  to  the  Pacific,  and,  on  his  way 
tu  Nootka,  he  met  the  Columbia,  which  had  just  quitted  the  bound, 
with  the  crew  of  the  North- West  America  on  board  as  passengers, 
for  China ;  and  it  was  agreed  between  the  two  captains  that 
Kendrick  should  take  command  of  the  sloop,  and  remain  on  the 
coast,  while  Gray,  in  the  Columbia,  should  carry  to  Canton  all  the 
furs  which  had  been  collected  by  both  vessels.  This  was  according- 
ly done ;  and  Gray  arrived,  on  tho  6th  of  December,  at  Canton, 
where  he  sold  his  furs,  and  took  in  a  cargo  of  tea,  with  which  he 
entered  Boston  on  the  10th  of  August,  1790,  having  carried  the  flag 
of  the  United  States  for  the  first  time  around  the  world.  Kendrick, 
immediately  on  parting  with  the  Columbia,  proceeded  in  the 
Washington  to  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  through  which  he  passed,  in  iti 
whole  length,  as  will  be  hereafter  more  fully  shown. 

The  Argonaut,  with  Colnett  and  his  men  on  board  as  prisoners, 
arrived,  on  the  16th  of  August,  at  San  Bias,  near  which  place  they 
were  kept  prisoners  until  the  arrival  of  the  commandant  of  that 
department,  Captain  Bodega  y  Quadra,  by  whom  Colnett  was 
treated  with  great  kindness,  and  soon  after  sent  to  the  city  oi 
Mexico.  There  he  remained  several  months,  during  which  the 
examination  of  the  cases  of  the  seized  vessels  was  in  progress ;  and 
it  was  at  length  decided  —  that,  althojgh  Martinez  had  acted  con- 
formably with  the  general  laws  and  regulations  of  Spain,  forbidding 
all  aliens  from  resorting  to  the  Spanish  American  coasts,  and  the 
vessels  might  therefore  be  retained  as  lawful  prizes,  yet,  in  con- 
sideration of  the  apparent  ignorance  of  their  oflUcers  and  owners 
with  regard  to  the  laws  and  rights  of  Spain,  as  also  for  the  sake  of 
peace  with  England,  they  should  be  released,  with  the  understand- 
ing, however,  that  they  were  not  again  to  enter  any  place  on  the 
Spanish  American  coasts,  either  for  the  purpose  of  settlement  or 
of  trade  with  the  natives.  In  virtue  of  this  decision,  Colnett 
returned  to  San  Bias,  where  he  learned  that  several  of  his  men  had 
died  of  the  fever  endemic  at  that  place,  and  his  ship  was  much 
injured  by  the  service  to  which  she  had  been  subjected ;  she  was, 
nevertheless,  refitted,  and,  with  the  remainder  of  her  crew,  he 
sailed  in  her  for  Nootka,  to  receive  possession  of  the  Princess 
Royal,  for  which  he  had  an  order.  On  arriving  at  the  sound, 
Colnett  found  the  place  deserted ;  and,  not  knowing  where  to  seek 


1790.] 


THK    riUNCESS   MOYAL   RESTORED. 


201 


the  sloop,  he  soiled  for  Maoto,  which  he  reached  in  the  latter  part 
of  1790.*  Thence  he  went,  in  the  following  year,  to  the  Sandwich 
Islands,  where  the  Princess  Royal  was  restored  to  him,  in  March, 
by  Lieutenant  Quimper,  the  Spanisn  officer  under  whose  command 
she  had  been  employed  for  nearly  two  yean. 

The  political  discussions  between  the  governments  of  Great 
Britain  and  Spain,  which  had  meanwhile  taken  place,  in  con- 
sequence of  the  seizures  at  Nootka,  will  be  related  in  the  en- 
suing chapter. 

S6 


11 


I 


-,..   '^       1..         1    -J,  ,  -        ,    . 


202 


CHAPTER   IX. 

1790. 


fJ'r      -0 


*.'■(>■' : 


X": 


Controversy  between  Great  Britain  and  Spain  respecting  the  Norm- West  Coasts  of 
America  and  the  Navigation  of  the  Pacific  —  The  Owners  of  the  Vessels  seized 
at  Nootka  apply  for  Redress  to  the  British  Government,  which  demands  Satis- 
faction for  the  alleged  Outrages  —  Spain  resists  the  Demand,  and  calls  on  Frauce 
for  Aid,  agreeably  to  the  Family  Compact  —  Proceedings  in  the  National  Assembly 
of  France  on  the  Subject  —  Spain  engages  to  indemnify  the  British  for  the 
Property  seized  —  Further  Demands  of  Great  Britain  —  Designs  of  Pitt  against 
Spanish  America — Secret  Mediation  of  France,  through  which  the  Dispute  is 
settled  —  Convention  of  October,  1790,  called  the  J^ootka  Treaty  —  Proceedings 
in  Parliament,  and  Reflections  on  this  Convention. 

The  Columbia  arrived  at  Macao  from  Nootka  in  December, 
1789,  bringing  as  passengers  the  officers  and  crew  of  the  North- 
West  America,  who  communicated  the  news  of  the  capture  of  that 
vessel,  and  of  the  Argonaut  and  Princess  Royal,  by  the  Spaniards. 
The  owners  immediately  determined  to  apply  to  the  British  govern- 
ment for  redress ;  and  Meares  was  accordingly  despatched  to  Lon- 
don, where  he  arrived  in  April,  1790,  provided  with  depositions, 
and  other  documents,  in  substantiation  of  their  claims.  While  he 
was  on  his  way,  however,  the  circumstances  on  which  his  applica- 
tion was  to  be  founded  had  already  become  the  subject  of  a  serious 
discussion  between  the  courts  of  London  and  Madrid. 

On  the  10th  of  February,  1790,  the  Spanish  ambassador  at 
London  presented  to  the  British  ministry  a  note,  in  which,  after 
communicating  the  fact  of  the  seizure  of  a  British  vessel  (the 
Argonaut)  at  Nootka,  he  required,  in  the  name  of  his  government, 
that  the  parties  who  had  planned  the  expedition  should  be  punished, 
in  order  to  deter  other  persons  from  making  settlements  on  territo- 
ries long  occupied  and  frequented  by  the  Spaniards ;  and  he  at  the 
same  time  complained  of  the  trade  and  fishery,  by  British  subjects, 
in  the  seas  adjoining  the  Spanish  American  continent  on  the  west, 
as  contrary  to  the  rights  of  Spain,  guarantied  by  Great  Britain  in 
the  treaty  of  Utrecht,  and  respected  by  all  European  nations.  To 
this  the  British  ministers  answered,  on  the  26th,  that,  althougli  they 
had  not  received  exact  information  as  to  the  facts  stated  by  the 


1790.] 


DISCUSSIONS    IN    LONDON. 


203 


ambassador,  yet  the  act  of  violence  against  British  subjects  described 
in  his  note  necessarily  suspended  all  discussion  of  the  claims  ad- 
vanced by  him,  until  adequate  atonement  should  have  been  made 
for  the  outrage.  In  the  mean  time,  they  demanded  the  immediate 
restoration  of  the  vessel  seized,  reserving  further  proceedings  on  the 
subject  until  more  complete  details  of  the  circumstances  could  be 
obtained. 

This  unexpected  answer,  with  other  circumstances,  induced  the 
Spanish  cabinet  to  suspect  that  more  was  meant  than  had  been 
openly  declared  by  Great  Britain  ;  that  this  power  was,  in  fact,  only 
seeking  an  occasion  to  break  the  peace  with  Spain  for  some  ulte- 
rior object :  and,  under  the  influence  of  this  suspicion,  preparations 
for  war  were  commenced  in  all  the  naval  arsenals  of  the  latter  king- 
dom. The  king  of  Spain  being,  however,  anxious  to  prevent  a 
rupture,  if  possible,  his  ambassador  at  London  addressed  another 
note  to  the  British  government  in  April,  declaring  that,  although 
the  Spanish  crown  had  an  indubitable  right  to  the  continent,  islands, 
harbors,  and  coasts,  of  America  on  the  Pacific,  founded  upon  trea- 
ties and  immemorial  possession,  yet,  as  the  viceroy  of  Mexico  had 
released  the  vessel  seized  at  Nootka,  his  Catholic  majesty  regarded 
the  aiTair  as  concluded,  without  entering  into  any  disputes  and  dis- 
cussions on  the  undoubted  rights  of  Spain ;  and,  desiring  to  give  a 
proof  of  his  friendship  for  Great  Britain,  he  should  rest  satisfied,  if 
her  subjects  were  commanded  to  respect  those  rights  in  future. 

This  last  communication  was  received  about  the  time  when 
Meares  arrived  in  London  from  China ;  and  the  information  brought 
by  him  was  not  calculated  to  render  the  British  government  inclined 
to  accept  the  pacific  overture  of  Spain.  On  the  contrary,  orders 
were  issned  for  arming  two  large  fleets,  and  the  whole  aflair,  which 
had  been  previously  kept  secret,  was  submitted  to  Parliament  by  a 
message  from  the  king  on  the  5th  of  May. 

In  this  message  his  majesty  states  that  two  vessels,  belonging  to 
his  subjects,  and  navigated  under  the  British  flag,  and  two  others, 
of  which  the  description  was  not  then  sufiiciently  ascertained,  had 
been  capt'  red  at  Nootka  Sound,  by  an  officer  commanding  two 
Spanish  ships  of  war ;  the'  cargoes  of  the  two  British  vessels  had 
been  seized,  and  their  crews  had  been  sent  as  prisoners  to  a  Span- 
ish port ;  —  that,  as  soon  as  he  had  been  informed  of  the  capture 
of  one  of  these  vessels,  he  had  ordered  a  demand  to  be  made  for 
her  restitution,  and  for  adequate  satisfaction,  previous  to  any  other 
discussion ;  from  the  answer  to  which  demand,  it  appeared  that  the 


\  I 


it 


Ml 


11- f 


jl:i-! 


304 


THE    KINO    OF    ENOLANS  S    MESSAOE. 


[1790. 


vessel  and  her  crew  had  been  liberated  by  the  viceroy  of  Mexico, 
on  the  supposition,  however,  that  ignorance  of  the  rights  of  Spain 
alone  induced  individuals  of  other  nations  to  frequent  those  coasts, 
for  the  purposes  of  trade  and  settlement ;  —  but  that  no  satisfaction 
was  made  or  offered  by  Spain,  and  a  direct  claim  was  asserted  by 
her  government  to  the  exclusive  rights  of  sovereignty,  navigation, 
and  commerce,  in  the  territories,  coasts,  and  seas,  of  that  part  of  the 
world.  In  consequence  of  all  which,  his  majesty  had  directed  his 
minister  at  Madrid  to  make  a  fresh  representation  on  the  subject, 
and  to  claim  such  full  and  adequate  satisfaction  as  the  nature  of  the 
case  evidently  required.  Having,  moreover,  been  informed  that 
considerable  armaments  were  in  progress  in  the  ports  of  Spain,  he 
had  judged  it  indispensable  to  make  preparations  for  acting  with 
vigor  and  effect  in  support  of  the  honor  of  his  crown,  and  the  inter- 
ests of  his  people ;  and  he  recommended  that  Parliament  should 
enable  him  to  take  such  other  measures,  and  to  make  such  aug- 
mentations of  his  forces,  as  might  be  eventually  requisite  for  this 
purpose.* 

The  recommendations  in  this  message  were  received  with  every 
mark  of  concurrence  in  Parliament  and  throughout  the  kingdom ; 
the  supplies  were  immediately  voted,  and  the  preparations  for  war 
were  continued  with  unexampled  activity.  On  the  day  in  which 
the  message  was  sent,  a  note  was  addressed  to  the  Spanish  ambas- 
sador at  London,  containing  a  reiteration  of  the  demands  previously 
made,  and  of  the  declaration  that,  until  those  demands  should  have 
been  satisfied,  the  question  of  the  rights  of  Spain  would  not  be  dis- 
cussed. "  His  majesty,"  says  the  note,  "  will  take  the  most  effectual 
pacific  measures  to  prevent  his  subjects  from  trespassing  on  the  just 
and  acknowledged  rights  of  Spain :  but  he  cannot  accede  to  the 
pretensions  of  absolute  sovereignty,  conunerce,  and  navigation, 
which  appeared  to  be  the  principal  objects  of  the  last  note  from 
the  Spanish  ambassador ;  and  he  considers  it  his  duty  to  protect  his 
subjects  in  the  enjoyment  of  the  right  of  fishery  in  the  Pacific 
Ocean."  The  British  Charge  d'affaires  at  Madrid  also  presented,  in 
the  name  of  his  government,  formal  demands  for  the  restitution  of 
the  other  vessel  [the  Princess  Royal]  and  cargo  seized  at  Nootka, 
and  for  repaiation  of  the  losses  and  injuries  sustained  by  the  British 
subjects  trading  in  the  North  Pacific  under  the  British  flag ;  asserting, 

*  This  message,  and  all  the  other  official  documents  relative  to  the  discussion 
which  have  been  published,  will  be  found  in  the  Proofs  and  Illustrations,  under  the 
letter  D. 


[1790. 

Mexico, 
oi  Spain 
le  coasts, 
tisfaction 
serted  by 
ivigation, 
art  of  the 
ected  his 
le  subject, 
ure  of  the 
rmed  that 
Spain,  he 
cting  with 
[  the  inter- 
lent  should 
such  aug- 
site  for  this 

with  every 
!  kingdom; 
ons  for  war 
ly  in  which 
lish  ambas- 
s  previously 
should  have 
not  be  dis- 
|ost  effectual 
on  the  just 
!cede  to  the 
navigation, 
note  from 
protect  his 
the  Pacific 
►resented,  in 
istitution  of 
at  Nootka, 
the  British 
;  asserting, 

J  the  discussion 
Ions,  under  the 


1790.] 


DEMANDS    OF   THE   BRITISH   OOTEBNMENT. 


303 


at  the  same  time,  as  a  principle  which  would  be  maintained  by  his 
government^  that  "  British  suljects  have  an  inditputable  right  to  the 
enjoyment  of  a  free  and  uninterrupted  navigation,  commerce,  and  Jiah' 
try,  and  to  the  possession  of  such  establishments  as  they  should  form, 
with  the  consent  of  the  natives  of  the  country,  not  previously  occu- 
pied by  any  of  the  European  nations." 

To  these  formal  exactions  of  the  British  government,  the  court  of 
Madrid  replied,  at  first  indirectly,  by  a  circular  letter  addressed,  on 
the  4th  of  June,  to  all  the  other  courts  of  Europe.  This  letter  was 
couched  in  the  most  conciliatory  language :  it  contained  a  recapitu- 
lation of  the  circumstances  of  the  dispute,  according  to  the  views 
of  Spain ;  denying  all  intention,  on  her  part,  to  commit  or  defend 
any  act  of  injustice  against  Great  Britain,  or  to  claim  any  rights 
which  did  not  rest  upon  irrefragable  titles ;  insisting  that  the  cap- 
ture of  the  British  vessel  had  been  repaired  by  the  conduct  of  the 
viceroy  of  Mexico  in  immediately  restoring  her ;  and  declaring  the 
readiness  of  his  Catholic  majesty  to  satisfy  any  demands  which 
should  prove  to  be  well  founded,  after  an  investigativ.n  of  the  ques- 
tion of  right  between  the  two  crowns.  This  reply  not  being  con- 
sidered sufficient  by  the  British  ambassador,  a  Memorial  was  deliv- 
ered to  him,  on  the  13th  of  the  same  month,  by  count  de  Florida 
Blanca,  the  Spanish  minister  of  state,  not  differing  essentially  in  its 
import  from  the  circular  letter;  which,  however,  served  only  to 
render  the  ambassador  still  more  urgent  for  a  specific  answer  to  the 
demands  of  his  government.  At  length,  after  repeated  conferences, 
the  Spanish  minister,  on  the  18th,  officially  signified  that  his  sove- 
reign, having  approved  the  restitution  of  all  the  vessels  and  their  car- 
goes seized  at  Nootka,  was  willing  to  indemnify  the  owners  for  their 
losses,  and  also  to  make  satisfaction  for  the  insult  to  the  dignity  of 
the  British  crown ;  provided,  that  the  extent  of  the  insult  and  of  the 
satisfaction  should  be  settled,  in  form  and  substance,  either  by  one 
of  the  kings  of  Europe,  to  be  selected  by  his  Britannic  majesty,  or 
by  a  negotiation  between  the  two  governments,  in  which  no  facts 
were  to  be  admitted  as  true,  except  such  as  were  fully  established ; 
and  that  no  inference  affecting  the  rights  of  Spain  should  be  drawn 
from  the  act  of  giving  satisfaction. 

This  offer  of  reparation  was  accepted  by  the  court  of  London ; 
and,  on  the  24th  of  July,  count  de  Florida  Blanca  presented  to 
Mr.  Fitzherbert,  the  British  ambassador  at  Madrid,  a  Declaration, 
in  the  name  of  his  sovereign,  to  the  effect — that  he  would  restore 
the  vessels  and  indemnify  the  owners  for  their  losses,  so  soon  as  ths 


I  m 


^  I, 


If 


.111 


mi 


206 


DECLARATION    OV    THE    SPANISH    GOVERNMENT. 


[1790. 


m 


*iji 


amount  should  have  been  ascertained,  and  would  give  satisfaction 
to  his  Britannic  majesty  for  the  injury  of  which  he  had  complained ; 
and  this  Declaration,  together  with  the  performance  of  tho  engage- 
ments made  in  it,  was  admitted  by  the  ambassador  in  his  Counter 
Declaration,*  as  full  and  entire  satisfaction  for  those  injuries :  it  be- 
ing, however,  at  the  same  time  admitted  and  expressed  on  both 
sides,  that  the  Spanish  ''Declaration  was  not  to  preclude  or  preju- 
dice the  ulterior  discussion  of  any  right  which  his  Catholic  majesty 
might  claim  to  form  an  exclusive  establishment  at  Nootka  Sound." 
The  affair  had  thus  far  proceeded,  nearly  in  the  same  course  as 
that  respecting  the  Falkland  Islands,  twenty  years  previous ;  and 
the  government  of  Mtxdrid  probably  supposed  that  it  would  have 
been  terminated  in  the  same  manner.  But  Mr.  Pitt,  then  in  the 
fulness  of  his  power  in  England,  had  other  objects  in  view.  The 
revolution  in  France  was  then  advancing  with  a  rapidity  terrible  to 
all  who  desired  to  maintain  the  existing  state  of  things  in  Europe ; 
and  anti-monarchical  doctrines  and  feelings  were  pervading  every 
part  of  that  continent,  and  even  of  the  British  Islands.  Pitt  clearly 
foresaw  the  storm  which  afterwards  came  on,  and  determined 
to  prepare  for  it,  by  arming  at  home,  and  by  leading  or  forcing 
other  nations  to  accede  to  his  plans.  He  accordingly  formed  alli- 
ances v'ith  Holland  and  Sweden :  for  Spain  he  had  inherited  all 
his  father's  hatred  and  contempt ;  and,  considering  her  long  and 
close  connection  with  France,  he  resolved  to  bend  and  bind  her  to 
his  views  by  the  strong  hand.  He  had  already,  in  an  inconceivably 
short  space  of  time,  assembled  a  mighty  armament,  which  he  in- 
tended, in  the  eve.it  of  a  war,  to  direct  against  the  Spanish  posses- 
sions in  America,  for  the  purpose  of  wresting  them  from  their  actual 
rulers,  either  by  conquest  or  by  internal  revolution  ;  f  and,  having 
assumed  this  position,  he  did  not  hesitate  to  require  from  Spain  the 
surrender  of  many  of  the  exclusive  pretensions  with  regard  to  nav- 
igation, commerce,  and  territorial  sovereignty,  upon  which  her  do- 
miuion  in  the  western  continent  was  supposed,  with  reason,  to 

*  The  Der.Iaration  and  Counter  Declaration  may  be  found  among  the  documents 
connected  with  the  discussion,  in  the  Proofs  and  Illustrations,  under  the  letter  D,  No.  7. 

t  Mr.  Pitt's  scheme  for  detachmg  from  Spain  her  transatlantic  dominions  is  be- 
lieved, with  reason,  to  have  been  suggested  to  him  by  Francisco  Miranda,  a  native 
of  Caraccas,  through  whose  agency  a  number  of  exiles  and  fugitives  from  those 
countries,  including  many  of  the  expelled  Jesuits,  were  engaged  in  the  plan,  and  cor- 
respondences were  commenced  with  the  principal  persons  inclined  to  a  separation 
from  Spain  in  all  parts  of  her  American  territories.  On  this  subject,  many  curious 
particulars  may  be  found  in  the  Edinburgh  Review  for  January,  1809.  The  subse- 
quent history,  and  the  melancholy  fate,  of  Miranda  are  well  known. 


[1790. 


1790.] 


FURTHER    NEGOTIATION    AT    MADRID. 


207 


itisfaction 

nplained ; 

o  engage- 
is  Counter 

les :  it  be- 

i  on  both 

>  or  preju- 

lic  majesty 

La  Sound." 

e  course  as 

vious ;  and 

vould  have 

ihen  in  the 

view.    The 

f  terrible  to 
in  Europe; 

ading  every 
Pitt  clearly 
determined 

g  or  forcing 
formed  alli- 

inherited  all 

ler  long  and 
bind  her  to 

inconceivably 
hich  he  in- 
Danish  posses- 
their  actual 
and,  having 
m  Spain  the 
igard  to  nav- 
rhich  her  do- 
[h  reason,  to 

the  documents 
£  letter  D,  No.  7. 
Idominions  is  be- 
Miranda,  a  native 
Itives  from  those 
heplan,  andcor- 
Jl  to  a  separation 
let,  many  curious 
09.    The  Bubsfr 


depend.  The  negotiation  on  the  subject  of  these  demands  was 
continued  at  Madrid  for  three  months  after  the  acceptance  of  the 
Spanish  Declaration ;  during  which  period  couriers  were  constantly 
flying  between  that  city  and  London,  and  the  whole  civilized  world 
was  kept  in  suspense  and  anxiety  as  to  the  result. 

The  British  plenipotentiary  at  Madrid,  Mr.  Fitzherbert,  began  by 
requiring  from  Spain  a  distinct  admission  of  the  right  of  his  coun- 
trymen to  navigate  and  fish  in  any  part  of  the  Pacific,  and  to  trade 
and  settle  on  any  of  its  unoccupied  American  coasts ;  in  reply  to 
which,  the  Spanish  minister,  Count  de  Florida  Blanca,  proposed  to 
admit  the  rights  of  fishery,  trade,  and  settlement,  with  regard  to  the 
open  sea,  and  to  coasts  north  of  the  51st  parallel  of  latitude,  on 
condition  that  the  British  should  never  penetrate  more  than  twenty 
leagues  into  the  interior,  from  those  coasts,  and  to  allow  the  privi- 
lege of  fishing  about  the  southern  extremity  of  the  continent,  but 
not  of  settling  there,  leaving  to  Spain  the  right  to  destroy  any  such 
establishments,  "as  is  practised  in  the  Falkland  Islands."''''    Mr. 
Fitzherbert  rejected  this  proposition,  and  insisted  that  certain  lines 
of  boundary  should  be  drawn  from  the  coasts,  through  the  interior 
of  the  continents,  in  the  north  and  in  the  south,  between  which 
British  subjects  should  form  no  settlements ;  the  territories  beyond 
those  lines,  in  either  direction,  being  free  to  both  nations,  provided 
that  the  subjects  of  either  should  have  access  to  the  settlements 
thus  made  by  the  other  party.    The  line  first  proposed  by  the 
British  as  the  northern  boundary,  was  to  extend  from  the  Pacific, 
along  the  31st  parallel  of  latitude,  to  the  Colorado,  thence  along 
that  river  to  its  source,  and  thence  to  the  nearest  branch  of  the 
Missouri;  but  another  line  was  afterwards  offered,  running  from 
the  Pacific,  along  the  40th  parallel  of  latitude,  eastward  to  the 
Missouri.    The  Spanish  government,  however,  positively  refused  to 
assent  to  these  or  any  other  lines  of  boundaiy  thus  arbitrarily 
fhosen ;  and  all  hope  of  accommodation  seemed  to  be  destroyed. 
It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  remark,  that  the  admission  of  either 
of  these  lines  would  have  materially  affected  the  destinies  of  the 
United  States,  and,  indeed,  of  the  whole  northern  continent. 

In  the  mean  time,  events  were  occurring  in  other  parts  of  Europe, 

which  contributed  to  change  the  views  of  the  disputing  parties,  and 

to  incline  them  to  compromise  their  differences,  and  even  to  unite 

their  forces. 

As  soon  as  the  dispute  between  Great  Britain  and  Spain,  and  the 

*  Narrative  of  the  negotiations  occasioned  by  the  dispute  between  England  and 
Spain  in  the  year  1790,  officially  published  by  the  British  ministers  in  1790.  , ,  - 


f^ 


« 


i.i 


'Ifjyi 


1  i 


*<3 
t 


llli 


ill 


iiOB 


PROCEEDINGS    OF    THE    FRENCH    GOVERNMENT. 


[1790. 


pt^paretioM  of  those  powers  for  war,  became  known,  King  Louis 
XVI.  of  France  ordered  fourteen  sail  of  the  line  to  be  equipped 
f6r  active  service,  in  ordet  to  meet  contingencies.     He  was,  how- 
ever, under  the  necessity  of  communicating  this  measure  to  the 
National  Assembly,  then  in  session,  which  seized  the  occasion  to 
deprive  the  crown  of  one  of  its  most  essential  attributes.    On  the 
S4th  of  May,  a  decree  was  passed  by  that  body,  establishing  that 
the  right  to  make  war  or  peace  belonged  to  the  nation,  and  could 
bnly  be  exercised  through  the  concurrence  of  the  legislative  and  the 
executive  branches  of  Uie  government ;  and  that  no  treaty  with  an- 
other power  could  have  effect  until  it  had  been  ratified  by  the  rep- 
resentatives of  the  nation :   a  committee  was  at  the  same  time 
appointed  to  examine  and  report  upon  all  the  existing  treaties  of 
idliance  between  France  and  other  nations.    These  proceedings 
were  equivalent  to  an  annulment  of  the  Family  Compact  betwee.: 
the  sovereigns  of  the  house  of  Bourbon :  nevertheless,  when  the 
king  of  Spain  found  himself  pressed  by  Great  Britain  to  relinc|ui8h 
his  exclusive  pretensions  with  regard  to  America,  he  formally  ap- 
plied to  his  cousin  of  France  for  aid,  agreeably  to  that  compact,  in 
resisting  those  demands ;  declaring,  at  the  same  time,  that,  unless 
the  assistance  should  be  given  speedily  and  effectually,  ''Spain 
'would  be  under  the  necessity  of  seeking  other  friends  and  allies 
among  all  the  powers  of  Europe,  without  excepting  any,  on  whom 
she  could  rely  in  case  of  need." 

The  letter  of  the  king  of  Spain  was  submitted  by  Louis  XTI.  to 
the  National  Assembly,  by  which  it  was  referred  to  the  committee 
appointed  to  examine  the  existing  treaties  between  France  and 
other  nations ;  and,  in  the  name  of  that  committee,  the  celebrated 
Mirabeau,  on  the  24th  of  August,  presented  a  luminous  report,  in- 
cluding considerations  of  the  character  of  the  Family  Compact  and 
other  engagements  between  France  and  Spain,  and  a  view  of 
the  actual  positions  of  Spain  and  Great  Britain  towards  each 
other  and  towards  France.  The  questions  raised  by  this  report 
were  debated,  with  great  display  of  eloquence  and  political  wis- 
dom, by  Mirabeau,  the  Abb^  Maury,  Lameth,  Barnave,  and  other 
distinguished  members  of  the  Assembly ;  and  it  was  decreed  that 
France,  while  taking  proper  measures  to  maintain  peace,  should 
observe  the  existing  commercial  and  defensive  engagements  between 
her  government  and  that  of  Spain ;  but  tb<\t  a  new  and  natkul 
treaty  should  be  immediately  negotiated,  wherein  the  relations  of 
the  two  countries  towards  each  other  should  be  defined  and  fixed 
with  precision  and  clearness,  agreeably  to  the  views  of  general 


1790.] 


SECRET   NEGOTIATION   AT    PARIS. 


309 


peace,  and  the  principles  of  justice,  which  were,  in  future,  to  prevail 
in  France ;  and  that,  taking  into  consideration  the  armaments  then 
in  prepress  throughout  Europe,  and  the  dangei's  to  which  the 
commerce  and  colonies  of  France  might  be  exposed,  the  marine 
force  of  the  kingdom  should  be  increased,  without  delay,  to  forty- 
five  sail  of  the  line,  and  a  proportionate  number  of  frigates. 

Although  this  decree  contained  no  direct  promise  of  assistance 
to  Spain,  yet  it  showed  that  the  French  government  penetrated 
the  designs  of  the  British,  and  considered  them  inimical  to  its  own 
interests ;  while,  at  the  same  time,  the  report,  on  which  the  decree 
was  based,  evinced  an  ardent  desire,  on  the  part  of  the  French 
reformers,  to  preserve  peace.  In  the  mean  time,  revolutionary 
principles  were  making  rapid  progress  throughout  Europe.  The 
Dutch,  who  had  engaged  to  assist  the  British  with  a  fleet,  in  case 
of  a  war  with  Spain,  found  their  forces  necessary  at  home ;  Swe- 
den having,  much  to  the  dissatisfaction  of  the  court  of  London, 
made  peace  with  Russia,  the  latter  power  was  left  at  liberty  to  pros- 
ecute its  schemes  for  the  dismemberment  of  "  England's  old  ally," 
Turkey  ;  and,  in  the  East  Indies,  Tippoo  Saib  was  beginning  that 
war  against  the  British  power  which  he  prosecuted  so  long  and 
vigorously.  Moreover,  the  expenses  6f  the  British  armament  had 
already  amounted  to  more  than  four  millions  of  pounds ;  and  the 
financial  condition  of  England  was  not  such  as  to  encourage  her 
government  to  commence  hostilities,  which  would,  most  probably, 
become  general.  Under  these  circumstances,  the  court  of  St. 
James  was  under  the  necessity  of  lowering  its  tone,  and  of  receding 
from  its  first  demands.  The  tletermmation  of  lines  of  boundary  to 
the  Spanish  American  dominions  in  the  north  and  in  the  south  was 
no  longer  required ;  and  it  was  admitted  that  the  navigation  and 
fishery  of  British  subjects  in  the  Pacific  Ocean  should  not  be 
carried  on  within  ten  sea  leagues  of  any  existing  Spanish  settle- 
ment, and  that  neitfier  party  should  form  settlements  on  the  coasts 
of  South  America,  south  of  those  actually  occupied  by  Spain.  Mr. 
Pitt,  moreover,  knowing  the  intimate  relations  which  still  subsisted 
between  the  French  and  Spanish  governments,  commissioned  a 
gentleman  at  Paris,  upon  whom  he  could  rely,  to  sound  Mirabeau, 
and  other  leaders  of  the  National  Assembly ;  and,  having  reason 
to  believe  them  sincerely  anxious  to  prevent  hostilities,  he  instructed 
his  agent  to  propose  a  secret  negotiation,  to  be  carried  on  through 
the  medium  of  the  French  government,  for  the  restoration  of  a 
good  understanding  between  Great  Britain  and  Spain.  ,. 

27 


(H 


s 


"t!  h 


m' 

III  '-' 

11 

■ 

;'i 

1 

lii 

210 


TERMINATION   OF   THE    DISPUTE. 


[1790. 


In  the  letter  of  instructions  from  Mr.  Pitt  to  his  agent  at  PariB,i* 
he  declares  it  to  be  essential  that "  the  French  should  not  appear  in 
the  business  as  mediators,  still  less  as  arbitrators,"  and  that  no  en- 
couragement should  be  given  to  them  to  propose  any  other  terms 
than  those  on  which  Great  Britain  had  already  insisted;  that, 
"whatever  confidential  communications  may  take  place  with  the 
diplomatic  committee  of  the  National  Assembly,  for  the  sake  of 
bringing  them  to  promote  the  views  of  Great  Britain,  no  ostensible 
intercourse  could  be  admitted,  except  through  accredited  minis- 
ters;" and  especially  that  "no  assurances  be  given,  directly  or 
indirectly,  which  go  further  than  that  Great  Britain  mee.ns  to  perse- 
vere in  the  neutrality  which  she  has  hitherto  observed  with  respect 
to  the  internal  dissensions  of  France,  and  is  desirous  to  cultivate 
peace  and  friendly  relations  with  that  country."  The  agent,  thus 
instructed,  piesented  himself  to  the  diplomatic  committee  of  the 
Nation&l  Assembly,  which  at  once  resolved  to  do  all  in  its  power 
to  strengthen  the  relations  with  England,  and  to  prevent  a  war,  if 
possible ;  and,  with  this  view,  three  of  its  most  influential  members, 
Fr^teau,  Barnave,  and  Menou,  were  deputed  to  conduct  the  busi- 
ness on  its  part.  These  members  conferred  with  the  British  agent, 
and  also  with  M.  de  Montmorin,  the  minister  of  foreign  relations  of 
France,  who  communicated  directly  with  the  Spanish  government; 
and  in  this  manner  the  controversy  was  brought  to  a  close,  by  a 
.  convention  signed,  at  the  palace  of  the  Escurial,  on  the  28th  of 
October,  by  Mr.  Fitzherbert,  the  British  ambassador,  and  count  de 
Florida  Blanca  on  the  part  of  Spain. 

This  convention,  commonly  called'  the  Nootka  treaty,  contains 
eight  articles,  of  which  the  substance  is  as  follows :  — 

With  respect  to  the  circumstances  which  occasioned  the  dispute, 
it  was  stipulated,  by  the  first  and  second  articles,  that  the  build- 
ings and  tracts  of  land,  on  the  north-west  coasts  of  America, 
of  which  British  subjects  were  dispossessed  by  a  Spanish  officer, 
"about  the  month  of  April,  1789,"  shall  be  restored ;  a  just  repara- 
tion shall  be  made  for  all  acts  of  violence  or  hostility  committed  by 
the  subjects  of  either  party  against  those  of  the  other,  "  subsequent 
to  the  month  of  April,  1789;"  and,  in  case  the  subjects  of  either 
should  have  been,  "  since  the  same  period,^'  forcibly  dispossessed  of 
their  lands,  vessels,  or  other  property  on  the  American  coasts,  or  the 

•  The  whole  letter  is  given  by  Bishop  Tomline,  in  his  Life  of  Pitt,  chap.  xii.  The 
name  of  the  person  to  whom  it  is  addressed  does  not  appear ;  he  is  simply  mentioned 
u  "a  gentleman  resident  at  Paris,  of  considerable  diplomatic  experience."     ' 


[1790. 

i  Paris  * 
ppear  in 
t  no  en- 
er  terms 
id;  that, 
with  the 
sake  of 
ostensible 
ed  minis- 
lirectly  or 
3  to  perse- 
ith  respect 

0  cultivate 
agent,  thus 
ttee  of  the 

1  its  power 
it  a  war,  if 
al  members, 
ct  the  busi- 
ritish  agent, 

relations  of 
Tovernment; 
close,  by  a 
the  28th  of 
id  count  de 

ity,  contains 

the  dispute, 
it  the  build- 
of  America, 
anish  officer, 
I  justrepara- 
lommitted  by 
«  subsequent 
jets  of  either 
possessed  of 
coasts,  or  the 


1790.] 


NOOTKA   CONVENTION. 


311 


,  chap.  xii. 
imply  men! 
Inee" 


The 


adjoining  seas,  they  shall  be  reestablished  in  the  possession  thereof, 
or  a  just  compensation  shall  be  made  to  them  for  their  losses. 

For  the  future,  it  was  agreed,  by  the  third  article  of  the  conven- 
tion, that  the  subjects  of  the  two  p^     3S  shall  not  be  disturbed  in 
navigating  or  fishing  in  the  South  Seas,  or  the  Pacific  Ocean,  or  in 
landing  on  the  coasts  thereof,  in  places  not  already  occupied,  for 
tlie  purposes  of  settlement  or  of  trade  with  the  natives ;  the  whole 
subject,   nevertheless,  to   the   restrictions   specified   in   the  three 
following  articles,  to  wit :  —  that  his  Britannic  majesty  shall  take 
the  most  effectual  means  to  prevent  his  subjects  from  making  their 
navigation  or  fishery  in  those  seas  a  pretext  for  illicit  trade  with 
the  Spanish  settlements ;  with  which  view  it  is  agreed  that  British 
subjects  shall  not  navigate  or  fish  within  ten  leagues  of  any  part  of 
the  coast  already  occupied  by  Spain ;   that  the  subjects  of  both 
nations  shall  have  free  access  and  right  of  trading  in  the  places 
restored  to  British  subjects  by  this  convention,  and  in  any  other 
parts  of  the  north-west  coasts  of  America,  north  of  the  places 
already  occupied  by  Spain,  where  the  subjects  of  either  party  shall 
have  made  settlements  since  the  month  of  April,  1789,  or  may  in 
future  make  any ;  and  that  no  settlement  shall  in  futuie  be  made, 
by  the  subjects  of  either  power,  on  the  eastern  or  the  western  coasts 
of  South  America,  or  the  adjacent  islands,  south  of  the  parts  of 
the  same  coasts  or  islands  already  occupied  by  Spain ;  though  the 
subjects  of  both  remained  at  liberty  to  land  on  those  coasts  and 
islands,  and  to  erect  temporary  buildings  only,  for  the  purposes  of 
their  fishery. 

Finally,  it  was  agreed,  by  the  seventh  article,  that,  in  cases  of 
infraction  of  the  convention,  the  officers  of  either  party  shall,  with- 
out committing  any  act  of  violence  themselves,  make  an  exact 
report  of  the  affair  to  their  respective  governments,  which  would 
terminate  such  differences  in  an  amicable  manner.  The  eighth 
article  relates  merely  to  the  time  of  ratification  of  the  convention.* 

The  convention,  together  with  the  declaration  and  counter 
declaration  preceding  it,  were  submitted  to  Parliament  on  the  3d 
of  December,  unaccompanied  by  any  other  papers  relative  to  the 
negotiation ;  and  they  became  the  subjects  of  animated  debates,  in 
which  the  most  distinguished  members  of  both  houses  took  parts. 
The  arrangements  were  extolled  by  the  ministers  and  their  friends 
in  general  terms,  as  vindicating  the  dignity  of  the  nation,  and 

*  The  convention  will  be  found  at  length  among  the  Proofii  and  Illuitretiona,  iiv 
the  latter  part  of  this  volume,  under  the  letter  K,  No.  1. 


Iv 


*  ; 


Ih  ! 


212 


NOOTKA  CONVENTION  BErORB  PARLIAMENT. 


[1790. 


providing  reparation  for  the  injuries  sustained  by  its  aubjects,  and 
as  securing  to  those  subjects,  in  future,  the  rights  of  navigation  and 
fishery  in  the  Pacific  and  Southern  Oceans,  and  of  settlement  on 
their  unoccupied  coasts,  and  establishing  the  long-discussed  ques- 
tions on  those  points,  on  such  grounds  as  must  prevent  all  further 
dispute.  The  opposition,  on  the  other  hand,  contended  that  the 
reparation  piomised  by  Spain  was  incomplete  and  insufficient; 
that  the  arrangements  for  the  prevention  of  future  difficulties  were 
merely  culpable  concessions  to  that  power,  whereby  the  rights  of 
British  subjects  were  materially  abridged,  and  the  Spaniards  would 
be  encouraged  to  commit  further  acts  of  violence;  and,  finally, 
that  all  the  advantages  which  could  be  expected  from  the  con- 
vention, even  according  to  the  views  of  the  ministers,  were  far 
below  the  amdunt  of  the  expense  at  which  they  had  been  obtained. 

It  was  noticed  by  Mr.  Charles  Fox,  as  a  curious  and  inexplicable 
incongruity  in  the  treaty,  that  "  about  the  month  of  April,  1789," 
should  have  been  inserted  as  the  date  of  what  was  known  to  have 
taken  place,  agreeably  to  all  the  evidence  produced,  in  May  of  the 
same  year ;  and  that,  although,  by  the  first  article,  the  lands  and 
buildings  declared  to  have  been  taken  from  British  subjects  by  a 
Spanish  officer,  "about  the  month  of  April,  1789,"  were  to  be 
restored,  yet,  by  the  second  article,  the  lands,  buildings,  and  other 
property,  of  which  the  subjects  of  either  party  had  been  dispos- 
sessed "subsequent  to  the  month  of  April,   1789,"  were  to  be 
restored,  or  compensation  was  to  be  made  to  the  owners  for  the 
losses  which  they  might  have  sustained.     Upon  this  point,  it  will  be 
seen  that,  if  the  word  "  or,"  in  the  concluding  part  of  the  second 
article,  were  replaced  by  and,  the   incongruity  would  disappear; 
but  then,  also,  the  first  article  would  become  entirely  superfluous. 
It  would,  however,  be  idle  to  suppose  that  any  error  could  have 
been  committed  with  regard  to  matters  so  essential,  or  that  the 
want  of  accordance  between  the  different  provisions  of  the  con- 
vention, noticed  by  Mr.  Fox,  should  have  been  the  result  of  accident 
or  carelessness.     The  ministers,  when  pressed  for  explanations  on 
this  head,  answered,  indirectly,  that  the  Spanish  government  would 
make  the  restitutions  as  agreed  in  the  first  article. 

It  may  here  be  observed,  that  no  notice  whatsoever  of  a  claui, 
on  the  part  of  British  subjects,  to  lands  or  buildings  on  the  north- 
west coast  of  America,  appears  either  in  the  king's  message  to 
Parliament,  communicating  the  fact  of  the  seizures  at  Nootka,  or 


1790.] 


NOOTKA  CONVENTION  BEFORE  PARLIAMENT. 


913 


in  the  debates  in  Parliament  on  that  message,  or  in  the  official 
correspondence  between  the  two  governments  on  the  subject,  so  far 
as  piiMished;  and  the  only  evidence  of  such  acquisition  of  lands  or 
erection  of  buildings  to  be  found  among  the  documents  annexed  to 
the  Memorial  presented  by  Meares  to  the  ministry,  is  contained  in 
the  information  of  William  Graham,  a  seaman  of  the  Felice,  which 
was  taken  in  London  five  days  after  the  date  of  the  Memorial. 
«The  statement  of  actual  and  probable  losses,'*  for  which  the  memo- 
rialists prayed  to  be  indemnified,  to  the  amount  of  six-  hundred  and 
fifty  thousand  dollars,  is,  moreover,  confined  entirely  to  losses  con- 
sequent upon  the  seizure  of  the  vessels  and  cargoes  at  Nootka. 
This  silence,  with  regard  to  lands  and  buildings,  in  all  the  docu- 
ments brought  from  China  by  Meares,  certainly  authorizes  the 
suspicion  that  the  idea  of  advancing  a  claim  on  those  points  may 
have  occurred  to  that  gentleman,  or  may  have  been  suggested 
to  him  after  his  arrival  in  England,  and  even  after  his  first  commu- 
nications with  the  ministers. 

With  respect  to  the  rights  of  navigation  and  fishery  in  the  Pacific 
and  Southern  Oceans,  and  of  settlement  m  their  unoccupied  coasts, 
it  was  insisted  by  Fox,  Grey,  the  marquis  of  Lansdowne,  and  other 
eminent  member^  of  the  opposition  in  Parliament,  that  nothing 
had  been  gained,  but,  on  the  contrary,  much  had  been  surrendered, 
by  the  convention.  *'  Our  right,  before  the  convention,"  said  Mr.  Fox, 
—"whether  admitted  or  denied  by  Spain  was  of  no  consequence, — 
was  to  settle  in  any  part  of  South  or  North- West  America,  not  for- 
tified against  us  by  previous  occupancy ;  and  we  were  now  restrict- 
ed to  settle  in  certain  places  only,  and  under  certain  conditions. 
Our  rights  of  fishing  extended  to  the  whole  ocean ;  and  now  it  was 
limited,  and  not  to  be  exercised  within  certain  distances  of  the 
Spanish  settlements.  Our  right  of  making  settlements  was  not,  as 
now,  a  right  to  build  huts,  but  to  plant  colonies,  if  we  thought 
proper.  In  renouncing  all  right  to  make  settlements  in  South 
America,  we  had  given  to  Spain  what  she  considered  as  inestima- 
ble, and  had,  in  return,  been  contented  with  dross."  "  In  every 
place  in  which  we  might  settle,"  said  Grey,  "  access  was  left  for  the 
Spaniards.  Where  we  might  form  a  settlement  on  one  hill,  they 
might  erect  a  fort  on  another ;  and  a  merchant  must  run  all  the 
risks  of  a  discovery,  and  all  the  expenses  of  an  establishment,  for  a 
property  which  was  liable  to  be  the  subject  of  continual  dispute, 
and  could  never  be  placed  upon  a  permanent  footing." 


I    I- 


»' .] 


II 

it 


i214 


REVIEW   or   tllC    NOOTKA    CONVENTION. 


[1790. 


At  to  the  utility  of  the  convention  in  preventing  disputes  in 
future  iictwecn  the  two  nations,  Mr.  Fox  was  wholly  incredulous ; 
and  ho  predicted  that  diiHcultics  would  soon  arise  (as  they  did) 
from  the  impossibility  of  devising  and  enforcmg  any  measures  on 
the  part  of  Great  Britain,  which  could  be  considered  "  effectual''  in 
checking  illicit  trade  between  British  subjects  and  the  Spanish  set- 
tlements in  America.  "  This  treaty,"  says  he,  in  conclusion,  "  re- 
minds me  of  a  lawyer's  will,  drawn  by  himself,  with  a  note  in  the 
margin  of  a  particular  clause ■>^<  This  will  afford  room  for  an  exceU 
lent  disquisition  in  the  Court  of  Chancery.'  With  equal  propriety, 
and  full  as  much  truth,  might  those  who  had  extolled  the  latp  :.«go- 
tiation,  for  the  occasion  it  had  given  to  show  the  vigor  and  prompt- 
itude of  the  national  resources,  write  in  the  margin  of  most  of  the 
articles  of  the  convention  —  <  This  will  afford  an  admirable  oppor- 
tunity for  a  future  display  of  the  power  and  energy  of  Great 
Britain:  " 

To  all  these  objections  the  ministers  and  their  friends  gave  only 
short,  general,  and  evasive  answers.  Their  great  majorities  in  both 
houses  enabled  them  to  dispense  with  arguments,  and  to  evade  the 
calls  for  information  or  papers  relating  to  the  transaction ;  and, 
having  triumphantly  carried  their  vote  of  thanks  to  the  sovereign, 
they  were  left  at  liberty  to  execute  the  new  engagements,  according 
to  their  own  construction,  for  which  they  had  certainly  provided 
themselves  with  ample  space. 

As  the  convention  of  October,  1790,  was  the  first  diplomatic  ar- 
rangement between  the  governments  of  civilized  nations  with  regard 
to  the  north-west  coast  of  North  America,  its  conclusion  forms  an 
important  era  in  the  history  of  that  part  of 'the  world.  On  exam- 
ining its  stipulations,  we  shall  see  that  they  were  calculated 
to  produce  very  few  and  slight  changes  in  any  way,  and  that 
those  changes  were  not,  upon  the  whole,  disadvantageous  to  the 
real  interests  of  Spain.  The  exclusive  navigation  of  the- Pacific  and 
Southern  Oceans,  and  the  sovereignty  of  the  vacant  territories  of 
America  bordering:  ufwn  them,  were  claimed  by  Spain,  only  with 
the  object  of  {n-eventiog  other  nations  from  intercourse  with  her 
settlements  ;  as  her  government  foresaw  that  such  intercourse,  par- 
ticularly with  the  British,  who  had  for  more  than  two  centuries 
been  striving  to  establish  it,  wxnild  be  fatal  to  the  subsistence  of 
Spanish  supremacy  over  those  dominions.  By  the  convention,  both 
parties  were  admitted,  equally,  to  navigate  and  fish  in  the  above- 


1790.] 


REVIEW  OF  THE  NOOTKA  CONVENTION. 


215 


named  seas ;  but  the  Britiih  wero,  at  the  same  time,  tpccially  pro- 
hibited from  approaching  the  territories  under  the  actual  authority 
of  Spain,  and  were  thus  debarred  from  the  exercise  of  a  privilege 
advantageous  to  themselves  and  most  annoying  to  Spain,  which 
they  previously  possessed  in  virtue  of  their  maritime  superiority. 
Both  parties  were  by  the  convention  equally  excluded  from  settling 
on  the  vacant  coasts  of  South  America,  and  from  exercising  that 
jurisdiction  which  is  essential  to  political  sovereignty,  over  any  spot 
north  of  the  most  northern  Spanish  settlement  on  the  Pacific  :  but 
tho  British  and  the  Russians  were  the  only  nations  who  would  be 
likely  to  occupy  any  of  those  territories,  and  tho  British  would  not, 
probably,  concede  to  the  Russians  any  rights  greater  than  those 
which  they  themselves  possessed ;  and  any  establishment  which 
either  of  those  powers  might  form  in  the  north,  under  circumstances 
80  disadvantageous,  would  be  separated  from  the  settled  provinces 
of  Spain  by  a  region  of  mountains,  forests,  and  deserts,  of  more 
than  a  thousand  miles  in  extent.     The  convention,  in  fine,  estab- 
lished new  bases  for  the  navigation  and  fishery  of  the  respective 
parties,  and  their  trade  with  the  natives  on  tho  unoccupied  coasts 
of  America ;  but  it  determined  nothing  regarding  the  rights  of  either 
to  the  sovereignty  of  any  portion  of  America,  except  so  far  as  it 
may  imply  an  abrogation,  or  rather  a  suspension,  of  all  such  claims, 
on  both  sides,  to  any  of  those  coasts.  , 

It  is,  however,  probable  that  the  convention  published,  as  the 
result  of  this  negotiation,  did  m>i  contain  all  the  engagements 
contracted  by  Great  Britain  atui  Spain  towards  each  other  on  that 
occasion.  It  was  generalh  believed  in  Europe  that  a  secret  treaty 
of  alliance  was  at  the  8an»e  tmne  signed,  by  which  the  two  nations 
were  bound,  under  certam  contingencies,  to  act  together  against 
France,  with  the  undrrstanding  that  the  stipulation*  of  the  conven- 
tion published  should  remain  inoperative ;  and  this  supposition  is 
strengthened  by  the  third  article  of  the  treaty  of  alliance  between 
those  powers,  concluded  on  the  25th  of  May,  171*;?,  setting  forth 
that,  "Their  majesties  havin;,  perceived  just  grounds  ot  jealousy 
and  uneasiness  for  the  safety  of  their  respective  dominions  and  for 
the  maintenance  of  the  general  system  of  Europe,  in  the  .neasures 
which  have  been  for  some  time  past  adopted  by  France,  they  had 
already  agreed  to  establish  between  them  an  intimate  and  entire  con- 
cert, upon  the  means  of  opposing  a  sufficient  barrier  to  those  dan- 
gerous views  of  aggression  and  aggrandizement,"  &.c. 


« 


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CHAPTER   X. 
1790  TO  1792. 


■       .,1    -f  ■  I        ■*!.     I 


f    !   •.         ■  '  * 


Vancouver  sent  by  the  British  Government  to  explore  the  Coasts  of  America,  and 
receive  Possession  of  Lands  and  Buildings  agreeably  to  the  Convention  with 
Spain  —  Passage  of  the  Washington,  under  Kendrick,  tlirough  the  Strait  of  Fuca, 
in  1789 — Nootka  reoccupied  by  the  Spaniards — Voyages  of  Fidalgo,  Quhnper, 
Elisa,  Billings,  Marchand,  and  Malaspina  —  Voyages  of  the  American  Fur  Tra- 
ders Gray,  Ingraham,  and  Kendrick  —  Discovery  of  the  Washington  Islands  by 
Ingraham.  ;?■  -  ■  . 

In  execution  of  -  the  first  and  second  articles  of  the  conven- 
tion of  October,  1790,  between  Spain  and  Great  Britain,  com- 
missioners were  appointed  on  each  side,  who  were  to  meet  at 
Nootka  Sound,  and  there  to  determine  what  lands  and  buildings 
were  to  be  restored  to  the  British  claimants,  or  what  amount  of 
indemnification  was  to  be  made  to  them  by  Spain.  The  British 
government  at  first  selected  Captain  Trowbridge  as  its  agent  for 
this  purpose ;  but  the  business  was  afterwards  committed  to  Captain 
George  Vancouver,  who  was  then  about  to  sail  on  a  voyage  of  ex- 
ploration to  the  Pacific. 

Vancouver  was  instructed  to  examine  and  survey  the  whole 
shores  of  the  American  continent  on  the  Pacific,  from  the  35th  to 
the  60th  parallels  of  latitude ;  to  ascertain  particularly  the  number, 
situation,  and  extent  of  the  settlements  of  civilized  nations  within 
these  limits  ;  and  especially  to  acquire  information  as  to  the  nature 
and  direction  of  any  water-passage,  which  might  serve  as  a  channel 
for  commercial  intercourse  between  that  side  of  America  and  the 
territories  on  the  Atlantic  side  occupied  by  British  subjects.  For 
this  last-mentioned  object,  he  was  particularly  to  "  examine  the  sup- 
posed Strait  of  Juan  de  Fuca,  said  to  be  situated  between  the  48th 
and  the  49th  degrees  of  north  latitude,  and  to  lead  to  an  opening 
through  which  the  sloop  Washington  is  reported  to  have  passed  in 
1789,  and  to  have  come  out  again  to  the  northward  of  Nootka."* 

,  *  Introduction  to  Vancouver's  narrative  of  his  voyage. 


1791.]       kxnorick's  vassaob  through  fuca's  stbait. 


m 


With  thme  orders,  Vancouver  sailed  from  England  iq  January, 
1791,  in  the  ship  Discovery,  accompanied  by  the  brig  Chatham, 
under  the  command  of  Lieutenant  Robert  Broughton,  The  instruc- 
tions for  his  conduct  as  commissioner  were  afterwards  despatched 
to  him  in  the  store>ship  Doedalus. 

The  account  of  the  passage  of  the  Washington  through  the  Strait 
of  Fuca,  mentioned  in  the  instructions  to  Vancouver,  had  appeared 
in  the  "  Observations  on  the  probable  Existence  of  a  J^orth-Weat 
Passage,"  prefixed  by  Meares  to  the  narrative  of  his  voyages,  which 
had  then  been  recently  published  at  London.  Meares  there  says, 
"  The  Washington  entered  the  Straits  of  John  de  Fuca,  the  knowl- 
edge of  whioh  she  had  received  from  us ;  and,  penetrating  up.  thenpi, 
entered  into  an  extensive  sea,  where  she  steered  to  the  northw{^rd 
and  eastward,  and  had  communications  with  the  various  tribes  who 
inhabit  the  shores  of  the  numerous  islands  that  are  situated  at  the 
back  of  Nootka  Sound,  and  speak,  with  some  little  variation,  the 
language  of  the  Nootkan  people.  The  track  of  this  vessel  is  marked 
oa  the  map,  and  is  of  great  moment,  as  it  is  now  completely  ascer- 
tained that  Nootka  Sound  and  the  parts  adjacent  are  islands,  and 
comprehended  within  the  great  northern  archipelago.  The  sea  also 
which  is  seen  to  the  east  is  of  great  extent,  and  it  is  from  this  star 
tionary  point,  and  the  most  westerly  parts  of  Hudson's  3ay,  that  we 
are  to  form  an  estimate  of  the  distance  between  them.  The  most 
easterly  direction  of  the  Washington's  course  is  to  the  longitude  of 
237  degrees  east  of  Greenwich.  It  is  probable,  however,  that  the 
master  of  that  vessel  did  not  make  any  astronomical  observations,  to 
give  a  just  idea  of  that  station ;  but,  as  we  have  those  made  by  Cap- 
tain Cook  at  Nootka  Sound,  we  may  be  able  to  form  a  conjecture, 
somewhat  approaching  the  truth,  concerning  the  distance  between 
Nootka  and  the  easternmost  station  of  the  Washington  in  the  north- 
ern archipelago ;  and  consequently  this  station  may  be  presumed  to 
be  in  the  longitude,  or  thereabout,  of  !237  degrees  east  of  Green- 
wich." In  another  place,  Meares  speaks  of  the  proofs  brought  by 
the  Waaiiington,  "  which  sailed  through  a  sea  extending  upwards  of 
eight  degrees  of  latitude,"  in  support  of  his  opinion,  that  the  north- 
western portion  of  America  was  a  collection  of  islands :  and  in  the 
chart  annexed,  "  the  sicetch  of  the  track  of  the  Atnerican  sloop  Wash- 
ington in  the  autumn  of  1789,"  is  represented  by  those  words  run- 
ning in  a  semi-oval  line  from  the  southern  entrance  of  the  Strait  of 
Fuc&,  at  Cape  Flattery,  eastward,  to  the  longitude  of  237  degrees, 
then  north-westward,  to  the  55th  parallel  of  latitude,  th^  W0st- 
28 


218 


kendrick's  passage  through  fvca's  strait.       [1789. 


H    ) 


>}} 


I 


ward,  through  the  passage  north  of  Queen  Charlotte's  Island,  to  the 
Pacific.  The  sea  through  which  the  track  extends  is  represented 
as  unlimited  in  the  east,  and  communicating,  in  the  west,  with  the 
Pacific  by  channels  between  islands :  no  pretension  to  accuracy  is, 
however,  made  in  this  part  of  the  chart,  the  object  being  merely  to 
show  that  the  Washington  sailed  from  the  southern  entrance  of  the 
strait  eastward  to  the  longitude  of  237  degrees,  and  northward 
to  the  latitude  of  55  degrees. 

The  name  of  the  person  under  whose  command  the  passage 
was  said  to  have  been  effected  is  not  given  ;  but.  Gray  being 
frequently  mentioned  by  Meares,  in  his  narrative  and  accompanying 
papers,  as  the  captain  of  the  Washington,  it  was  naturally  supposed 
that,  if  that  shop  did  pass  through  the  strait,  she  must  have  done  so 
under  the  command  of  Gray ;  and  when  Vancouver,  who  met  Gray 
near  Nootka  in  1792,  as  will  be  hereafter  related,  was  assured  by 
him  that  he  had  entered  the  opening,  but  had  only  advanced  fifty 
miles  within  it,  the  entire  erroneousness  of  the  account  given  by 
Meares  was  regarded  as  established. 

However,  about  the  time  of  Vancouver's  departure  from  England, 
an  angry  discussion  was  carried  on  through  the  medium  of  pam- 
phlets, between  Meares,  and  Dixon  the  captain  of  the  ship  Queen 
Charlotte,  (one  of  the  vessels  sent  to  the  Pacific  by  the  King 
George's  Sound  Company  of  London,)  in  consequence  of  the  se- 
vere remarks  made  by  Meares,  in  his  work,  on  the  character  of 
Dixon,  and  on  many  parts  of  his  journal,  which  had  been  pub- 
lished in  1789.  Dixon,  in  his  first  pamphlet,*  particularly  attacked 
and  ridiculed  the  account  given  by  his  opponent  of  the  passage  of 
the  Washington,  and  sneeringly  summoned  him  to  ''inform  the 
public  from  what  authority  he  had  introduced  the  track  of  that  ves- 
sel into  his  chart."  To  this  Meares,  in  his  Answer,  f  says,  "  Mr. 
Neville,  a  gentleman  of  the  most  respectable  character,  who  came 
home  in  the  Chesterfield,  a  ship  in  the  service  of  the  East  India 
Company,  made  that  communication  to  me  which  I  have  communi- 
cated to  the  public.  Mr.  Kendrick,  who  commanded  the  Wash- 
ington, arrived  at  China,  with  a  very  valuable  cargo  of  fiirs,  previ- 
ous to  the  departure  of  the  Chesterfield ;  and  Mr.  Neville,  who  was 

*  Remarks  on  the  Voyages  of  John  Meares,  in  a  Letter  to  that  Crentleman,  by 
George  Dixon,  late  Commander  of  the  Queen  Charlotte  in  a  Voyage  around  the 
World.    London,  1790. 

t  An  Answer  to  Mr.  George  Dixon,  &c.,  by  John  Meares ;  in  which  the  Remarks 
of  Mr.  Dixon  are  AiUy  considered  and  refuted.    London,  1791. 


\ 


[1789. 

I,  to  the 
resented 
vith  the 
uracy  is, 
lerely  to 
ie  of  the 
arthward 

I  passage 
ay  being 
npanying 
supposed 
e  done  so 
met  Gray 
ssured  by 
need  fifty 
given  by 

I  England, 
p,  of  para- 
dip  dueen 
the  King 
of  the  se- 
laracter  of 
been  pub- 
ly  attacked 
►assage  of 
inform  the 
»f  that  ves- 
says,  "Mr. 
who  came 
East  India 
communi- 
the  Wash- 
Ifiirs,  previ- 
I,  who  was 

entleman,  by 
|e  around  the 

,  the  Remarks 


1789.]  kendrick's  passage  through  the  strait  of  fuca.   219  , 

continually  with  him  during  that  interval,  and  received  the  particu- 
lars of  the  track  from  him,  was  so  obliging  as  to  state  it  to  me." 

Thus  it  appears  that  the  passage  of  the  Washmgton  through  the 
stt  ait,  as  reported  by  Menres,  took  place  under  Kendrick,  after  Gray 
had  quitted  the  command  of  that  sloop.  This  explanation  was 
published  in  London  subsequent  to  the  departure  of  Vancouver  for 
the  Pacific ;  and,  the  discussion  between  Meares  and  Dixon  being 
on  matters  in  which  the  public  could  have  taken  little  or  no  interest, 
it  was  doubtless  forgotten,  and  their  pamphlets  were  out  of  circu- 
lation, long  before  thq  return  of  the  navigator  to  England. 

With  regard  to  the  truth  or  falsehood  of  the  account,  no  infor- 
mation has  been  obtained,  in  addition  to  that  afforded  by  Meares ; 
and,  although  little  dependence  can  be  placed  on  his  statements, 
when  unsupported  by  other  evidence,  yet  they  should  not  be 
rejected  in  this  case,  because  — first,  he  had  no  interest  in  ascribing 
any  thing  meritorious  to  citizens  of  the  United  States,  whom  he 
uniformly  mentions  with  contempt  or  dislike  in  his  work,  and 
accuses  of  taking  part  with  the  Spaniards  against  his  vessels; 
— seco'fu:  y,  tb3  subject  was  one  with  which  he  was  perfectly  con- 
versant, ^.i  u\  which  he  would  not  probably  have  been  deceived, 
or  have  committed  any  error  of  judgment ;  and,  —  lastly,  the  geog- 
raphy of  that  part  of  the  American  coasts  corresponds  exactly  with 
the  descriptions  given  by  Kendrick  of  what  he  had  seen,  though 
the  inferences  drawn  from  them  by  Meares  arc  incorrect.  Thus 
the  easternmost  part  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca  is  now  known  to  be  in 
the  meridian  of  237J  degrees  east  from  Greenwich,  and  under  the 
parallel  of  48J  degrees,  from  the  intersection  of  which  lines  the 
coast  of  the  continent  runs  north-westward,  through  ten  degrees  of 
latitude,  penetrated  by  numerous  inlets,  and  bordered  by  thousands 
of  islands ;  so  that  a  navigator,  sailing  along  this  coast,  without 
tracing  to  their  terminations  all  these  channels  and  inlets,  might 
well  have  supposed  himself  in  a  sea  extending  far  on  either  side, 
and  filled  with  islands. 

Under  these  circumstances,  Kendrick  is  to  be  considered  as  the 
first  person,  belonging  to  a  civilized  nation,  who  sailed  through  the 
Strait  of  Fuca,  after  its  discovery  by  the  Greek  pilot,  in  1592. 

Vancouver  did  not  reach  the  north-west  coasts  of  America  until 
March,  1792.  In  the  mean  time,  the  Spaniards  had  resumed  their 
position  at  Nootka  Sound,  and  formed  another  establishment  in  its 
vicinity ;  and  several  voyages  of  discovery  had  been  made  by  their 
navigators  along  those  coasts.     The   Spanish  government  was, 


irl 


i  'I 


:i         ! 


...»  n  10  v»A!tT  voyAoe  oi"  riDALcro. 


tI790 


indcfed,  then  mriotnly  directing  its  attention  to  the  discovery  and 
occupation  of  the  territories  north  of  its  settlements  in  California, 
agreeably  to  the  plan  devised  in  1765,  and  with  the  same  object 
of  preventing  those  territories  from  falling  into  the  possession  of 
other  nations ;  and,  for  these  purposes,  the  viceroy  of  Mexico  was 
direr  i  to  employ  every  means  at  his  disposal.  Martinez  was, 
indc.d,  deprived  of  his  command,  immediately  on  his  arrival  in 
San  Bias,  in  December,  1789:  but  his  vessels,  including  the 
Princess  Royal,  which  had  been  taken  from  the  English  -.n  the 
preceding  summer,  were  sent  back  to  Nootka  Sound,  under  Cap- 
taiTi  Francisco  Elisa,  in  the  spring  of  1790 ;  and  preparations  were 
immediately  begun  for  a  permanent  establishment  on  Friendly 
Gove. 

As  soon  as  the  first  arrangements  for  this  purpose  were  completed, 
Elisa  despatched  Lieutenant  Salvador  Fidalgo,  in  the  schooner  San 
Carlos,  to  examine  the  coasts  occupied  by  the  Russians,  and  inquire 
into  the  proceedings  of  that  nation  n  America.  Fidalgo  accord- 
ingly sailed  for  Prince  William's  Sound,  in  which,  and  in  Cook's 
River,  he  spent  nearly  three  months,  engaged  in  surveying  and 
in  visiting  the  Russian  establishments;  his  provisions  being  then 
exhausted,  he  took  his  departure  for  San  Bias,  where  he  arrived  on 
the  14th  of  November.  The  geographical  information  obtained  by 
him  was  scanty ;  and  the  only  news  which  he  brought  back, 
respecting  the  proceedings  of  the  Russians,  was,  that  they  had 
formed  an  establishment  on  Prince  William's  Sound,  and  that  a 
ship  had  passed  that  bay  from  Kamtchatka,  on  an  exploring  expe- 
dition towards  the  east.* 

The  Russian  ship,  thus  mentioned  by  Fidalgo,  was  one  of  those 
which  had  been  begun  at  Ochctsk  in  1785,  by  order  of  the  empress 
Catharine,  for  a  f  ''  secret  astronomical  and  geographical  expedition, 
to  navigate  the  Frozen  Ocean,  and  describe  its  coasts,  and  to 
aticertain  the  situation  of  the  islands  in  the  sea  between  the  conti- 
nents of  Asia  and  America."  For  this  expedition,  a  number  of 
officers  and  men  of  science,  from  various  parts  of  Europe,  were 
engaged ;  and  the  command  was  intrusted  to  Joseph  Billings,  an 
Englishman,  who  had  accompanied  Cook,  in  his  last  expedition,  as 
assistant  astronomer :  but  the  preparations  proceeded  so  slowly,  in 
consequence  of  the  want  of  every  thing  requisite  for  the  purpose  at 

*  Manuscript  journal  of  the  voyage  of  Fidalgo,  among  the  documents  obtained  from 
the  hydrographical  department  of  Madrid, 
t  Narrative  of  the  Russian  expedinon  under  Billings,  by  Martin  Sauer. 


1790.] 


VOTAGBlS   or   BILLINOS   AKD  ^UIMPER. 


ita  obtained  from 


Ochotsk,  that  the  vessels  were  not  ready  for  sea  until  1789,  and 
then  one  of  them  was  wrecked  immediately  after  leaving  the  port. 
With  the  other  vessel  Billings  took  his  departure,  on  the  2d  of 
May,  1790,  and  sailed  eastward,  stopping,  in  his  way,  at  Unalashka, 
Kodiak,  and  Prince  William's  Sound-  as  far  as  Mount  St.  Elias ; 
but  there  his  provisions  began  to  fail,  and  he  returned  to  Petro- 
pawlowsk,  soon  after  reaching  which  he  abandoned  the  command 
of  the  enterprise.  In  the  following  year,  the  same  vessel,  with 
another,  which  had  been  built  in  Kamtchatka,  quitted  the  Bay  of 
Avatscha,  under  Captains  Hall  and  SarytschefT,  neither  of  whom 
advanced  beyond  Bering's  Strait  on  the  north,  or  Aliaska  on  the 
east,  or  collected  any  information  of  value  within  those  limits.  A 
nnlancholy  picture  of  the  sufferings  experienced  in  these  vessels 
has  been  presented  in  the  narrative  of  Martin  Sauer,  a  German, 
who,  in  an  unlucky  moment,  agreed  to  act  as  secretary  to  the  expe- 
dition: another  account,  contradicting  that  of  Sauer  in  many 
particulars,  has  been  published  by  SarytschefT,  who  attributes  the 
failure  of  the  enterprise  to  the  incapacity  of  Billings. 

In  the  summer  of  1790,  an  attempt  was  also  made,  by  the 
Spaniards,  to  explore  the  supposed  Strait  of  Juan  de  Fuca.  For 
that  purpose,  Elisa,  the  commandant  of  Nootka,  detached  Lieu- 
tenant Quimper,  in  the  sloop  Princess  Royal,  who  traced  the  pas- 
sage in  an  eastwardly  direction,  examining  both  its  shores,  to  the 
distance  of  about  a  hundred  miles  from  its  mouth,  where  it  was 
observed  to  branch  off  into  a  number  of  smaller  passages,  towards 
the  south,  the  >iast,  and  the  north,  some  of  which  were  channels 
between  islands,  while  others  appeared  to  extend  far  into  the 
interior.  Quimper  was  unable,  from  want  of  time,  to  penetrate 
any  of  these  passages ;  and  he  could  do  no  more  than  note  the 
positions  of  their  entrances,  and  of  several  harbors,  all  of  which 
are  now  well  known,  though  they  are  generally  distinguished  by 
names  different  from  those  assigned  to  them  by  the  Spaniards. 
Among  these  passages  and  harbors  were  the  CarMl  de  Caamano, 
afterwards  named  by  Vancouver  Admiralty  Inlet;  the  Boca  de 
Fion,  or  Deception  Passage ;  the  Canal  de  Guemes,  and  Canal  de 
Haro,  which  may  still  be  fouiid  under  those  names  in  English 
charts,  extending  northward  from  the  eastern  end  of  the  strait; 
Port  Quadra,  the  Port  Discovery  of  Vancouver,  said  to  be  one  of 
the  best  harbors  on  the  Pacific  side  of  America,  with  Port  Quimper, 
near  it  on  the  west ;  and  Port  Nunez  Gaona,  culled  Poverty  Cove 
by  the  American  fur  traders,  situated  a  few  miles  east  of  Cape 


222 


TOTAGE    OF   MAI.ASPINA. 


11791. 


Flattery,  where  the  Spaniards  attempted,  in  1792,  to  form  a  settle- 
ment. Having  performed  this  duty  as  well  as  was  possible  under 
the  circumstances  in  which  he  was  placed,  Quimper  returned  to 
Nootka,  where  he  arrived  in  the  beginning  of  August.* 

On  the  2d  of  June,  1791,  Captain  Alexandro  Malaspina,t  an 
accomplished  Italian  navigato;  in  the  service  of  Spain,  who  was 
then  engaged  in  an  expedition  of  survey  and  discovery  in  the 
Pacifi'  rrived  on  the  coast,  near  Mount  San  Jacinto,  or  Edge- 
curab,  ./iti.  his  two  ships,  the  Descubierta,  commanded  by  himself, 
and  the  Atrevida,  under  Captain  Bustamente.  The  principal  object 
of  their  visit  was  to  determine  the  question  as  to  the  existence  of 
the  Strait  of  Anian,  described  in  the  account  of  Maldonado's 
pretended  voyage,  the  credibility  of  which  had  been,  in  the  pre- 
ceding year,  affirmed,  by  the  French  geographer  Buache,  in  a 
memoir  read  before  the  Academy  of  Sciences  of  Paris.  With  this 
view,  they  carefully  examined  the  coast  between  Prince  William's 
Sound  an<-  Mount  Fairweather,  running  nearly  in  the  direction  of 
the  60th  parallel,  under  which  Maldonado  had  placed  the  entrance 
of  his  strait  into  the  Pacific,  searching  the  various  bays  and  inlets 
which  there  open  to  the  sea,  particularly  that  called  by  the  English 
Admiralty  Bay,  situated  at  the  foot  of  Mount  St.  Elias.  They 
found,  however,  —  doubtless  to  their  satisfaction,  —  no  passage 
leading  northward  or  eastward  from  the  Pacific ;  and  they  became 
convinced  that  the  whole  coast  thus  surveyed  was  bordered  by  an 
unbroken  chain  of  lofty  mountains.  Want  of  time  prevented  them 
from  continuing  their  examinations  farther  south ;  and  they  could 
only,  in  passing,  determine  the  latitudes  and  longitudes  of  a  few 


*  The  journal  of  this  voyage  is  among  the  manuscripts  obtained  from  the  hydro- 
graphical  depart',  nt  of  Madrid :  annexed  to  it  is  a  memoir  on  the  manners,  customs, 
and  language,  ot  tne  Indians  about  Nootka  Sound,  translated  from  the  English  of 
Joseph  Ingraham,  the  mate  of  the  American  ship  Columbia,  who  wrote  it,  at  tiie 
request  of  Martinez,  in  1789. 

t  The  journals  of  Malaspina's  expedition  have  never  been  published.  A  sketcii 
of  his  voyajre  along  the  north-west  coasts  of  America  is  given  in  the  Introduction  tu 
the  Journal  of  Galiano  and  Valdes,  in  which  the  highest,  and,  in  some  places,  tho 
most  extravagant,  praise  is  bestowed  on  the  officers  engaged  in  it.  "Yet — will  it  be 
believed .''  —  the  name  of  Mulaspina  does  not  appear  there  or  in  any  other  part  ofihe 
book.  The  unfortunate  commander,  having  given  some  offence  to  Godoy,  better 
known  as  the  Prince  of  the  Peace,  who  then  ruled  Spain  without  restriction,  was,  on 
his  return  to  Europe  in  1794,  confined  in  a  dungeon  at  Corunna,  and  there  kept  as  a 
prisoner  until  1802,  when  he  was  liberated,  after  the  peace  of  Amiens,  at  the  express 
desire  cf  Napoleon.  The  name  of  one  who  had  thus  sinned  could  not  be  allowed  to 
appear  on  the  pages  of  a  work  published  officially,  by  the  Spaoish  government,  for 
the  purpose  of  vindicating  the  claims  of  its  navigators.  ,.,.;;., 


\l  I 


!(i 


1791] 


u,;vA 


VOYAGE    or   MARCHAND. 


223 


>ina,t  an 
who  was 
y  in  the 
or  Edge- 
f  himself, 
pal  object 
stence  of 
ildonado's 
1  the  pre- 
iche,  in  a 
With  this 
!  William's 
iirection  of 
le  entrance 
and  inlets 
the  English 
lias.    They 
|no  passage 
hey  became 
iered  by  an 
rented  them 
they  could 
Bs  of  a  few 


^om  the  hydro- 
mers,  customs, 
the  English  of 
raote  it,  at  the 


points  between  Mount  San  Jacinto  and  Nootka  Sound,  where  they 
arrived  on  the  13th  of  August. 

The  visit  made  to  the  north-west  coasts  of  America,  in  the  summer 
of  1791,  by  Captain  Etienne  Marchand,  in  the  French  commtrcial 
ship  SoHde,  from  Marseilles,  is  only  mentioned  on  account  of  the 
Introduction  by  Fleurieu  to  the  Journal  of  her  voyage,  to  which 
allusion  has  been  often  made  in  the  preceding  pages.  Marchand 
landed  on  the  shore  of  the  Bay  of  Guadalupe,  or  Norfolk  Sound, 
near  the  56th  degree  of  latitude,  where  he  remained  two  weeks,  en- 
gaged in  trading  with  the  natives ;  after  which  he  sailed  along  the 
roasts  southward,  occasionally  landing  and  makmg  observations,  to 
the  entrance  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  and  thence  took  his  departure 
for  Canton."' 

In  the  mean  time,  nine  vessels  from  England  and  seven  from  the 
United  States  were  engaged  in  the  trade  on  the  north-west  coasts 
of  America.  Of  the  movements  of  the  English  traders  few  accounts 
have  been  made  public :  the  most  active  and  enterprising  among 
them  appears  to  have  been  Captain  Brown,|  '  the  ship  Butter- 
worth,  from  London,  to  whom  Vancouver  acknowledges  himself 
indebted  for  useful  information  on  several  occasions.  In  what  man- 
ner the  British  navigator  treated  citizens  of  the  United  States,  f'-om 
whom  he  derived  information  much  more  important,  will  be  shown 
hereafter. 

*  Respecting  the  places  thus  visited,  very  little  exact  information  is  to  be  derived 
from  the  Journal  of  Marchand,  though  hundreds  of  its  pages  are  devoted  to  philosoph- 
ical speculations  (doubtless  by  the  editor)  on  the  origin  and  capacity  of  the  north- 
west  American  Indians,  their  languages  and  political  and  religious  institutions,  and 
political  and  religious  institutions  in  gene  J.  The  Journal,  indeed,  seems  to  have 
beta  pubVshed  merely  in  order  to  afford  a  frame-work  for  the  comments  and  disqui- 
sitions of  the  editor,  Fleurieu,  which,  with  all  their  faults,  are  the  only  parts  of  the 
work  of  any  value. 

The  Introduction  to  this  Journal  is  a  memoir  read  by  Fleurieu  before  the  National 
Institute  at  Paris,  in  1797,  on  the  subject  of  the  discovery  of  the  north-west  coasts  of 
America,  in  which  he  presents  a  history,  with  reviews  of  all  other  accounts,  of  the 
several  exploi;^.g  voyages  made  by  people  of  civilized  nations  along  those  coasts, 
from  the  period  of  the  conquest  of  Mexico  by  the  Spaniards  to  the  year  1790,  when 
Marchand  began  his  voyage.  For  such  a  task,  Fleurieu  was  well  fitted,  by  his 
ptevious  labors,  his  general  science,  and  his  acquaintance  with  geography  and  mari- 
time affairs  :  his  memoir  is  elegantly  written,  ..nd  his  accounts  and  opinions  are,  for 
the  most  part,  clear,  fair,  and  liberal  towards  individuals  and  nations.    This  praise  is, 

I  however,  not  to  be  awarded  to  every  portion  of  his  work.  He  was  extravagant  in 
generalizing,  and  often  careless  in  the  examination  of  his  authorities,  in  consequence 
«f  which  he  committed  numerous  errors ;  and  his  devotion  to  his  own  country^  and 
his  contempt  for  the  Spaniards  and  their  government,  led  him  frequently  to  make 

I  issertions  and  observations  at  variance  with  justice  and  truth. 
t  Brown  was  killed  by  the  natives,  at  Woahoo,  one  of  the  Sandwich  Islands, 

I  m  January,  1795. 


ft 
J   t3 

W          ( 

'Y    \a 

Sir      >■   •. 

1          ' 

>i(    Qi 

B> '  I 

'  ^  v9 

i     ' 

^  1 

I  'i' 

'  1 

A, 

'■1 

S24 


ATTACK    ON   THE    BLEONOHA   AT    MOWEE. 


[1790. 


li'   11   I 


The  second  trading  adventure  to  the  North  Pacific  made  by  citi- 
zens of  the  United  States  was  that  of  Captain  Metcalf,  who  sailed 
from  New  York  in  1788,  in  the  brig  Eleonora,  for  Canton,  and 
there  purchased  a  small  schooner,  which  he  named  the  Fair  Anur- 
icon,  and  placed  under  the  command  of  his  son,  a  youth  of  eighteen. 
With  these  vessels  he  arrived,  in  November,  1789,  at  Nootka  Sound, 
where  the  schooner  wa.^  seized  by  the  Spanish  commandant  Marti, 
nez ;  but  she  was  soon  liberated,  unfortunpiely.,  as  it  proved,  for 
her  captain  and  crew.    On  their  way  from  the  American  coast,  the 
vessels  were  separated.   The  Eleonora,  on  the  30th  of  January,  1790, 
reached  a  small  bay  in  Mowee,  one  of  the  Sandwich  Islands,  where 
she  anchored ;  and,  on  the  same  night,  her  boat,  and  a  seaman  who 
was  sleeping  in  it,  were  taken  away  by  the  natives.     On  the  fol- 
lowing day,  the  islanders  begun  to  assemble  in  the  bay  in  canoes, 
and  on  the  shores,  in  great  numbers,  armed,  and  showing  evidently 
the  intention  to  take  the  vessel ;  and  one  of  them  was  seized  in  the 
act  of  endeavoring  to  strip  off  a  piece  of  her  copper,  under  the  idea, 
as  he  confessed,  that  she  would  in  consequence  sink.     The  natives 
becoming  more  daring,  Metcalf  fired  on  them  with  grape,  and 
burnt  their  village ;  and,  having  thus  apparently  quieted  them,  he 
went  farther  up  the  bay,  in  order  to  obtain  water.    Three  or  four 
days  afterwards,  a  native  came  on  board,  who  offered  to  bring  back 
the  boat  and  the  sailor  for  a  certain  reward ;  his  offer  was  accepted, 
and,  on  the  following  day,  he  reappeared  with  the  rudder  of  the 
boat  and  some  of  the  bones  of  the  man,  who  had  been  sacrificed  to 
the  gods  of  the  island,  and  coolly  demanded  the  promised  reconi' 
pense.     This  demand  was  granted,  with  a  view  to  conciliation ;  but 
the  opposite  effect  was  produced :  for  the  islanders,  supposing  that 
they  had  intimidated  the  Americans,  again  surrounded  the  ship  Id 
their  canoes  in  vast  numbers.     Metcalf  thereupon,  either  from  exas- 
peration, or  from  his  seeing  no  other  mode  of  safety,  fired  all  his 
guns,  charged  with  grape  and  nails,  among  them,  and  killed,  as 
was  said,  more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty ;  after  which  he  sailed 
for  Owyhee,  and  anchored  in  Karakakooa  Bay.* 

*  The  account  of  these  transactions  is  taken  principally  from  a  letter  written  by  a 
person  on  board  of  the  Eleonora,  which  was  published  in  the  newspapers  of  the 
United  States  soon  ailer  the  occurrences ;  and  from  the  manuscript  journal  of  Captain 
Ingraham,  which  confirms  all  the  statements  of  the  letter  writer.  Vancouver  (vol.ii. 
p.  1 36)  represents  the  affair  as  disadvantageously  to  the  Americans  as  possible,  accord- 
mg  to  his  constant  practice.  Jarvis,  in  his  History  of  the  Sandwich  Islands,  gifc*  I 
the  account  as  handed  down  by  the  natives,  holding  Metcalf  up  to  view  as  a  monster  [ 
of  cruelty,  and  the  capture  of  the  Fair  American  as  "  an  awflil  retribution." 


*  Davis  di 
'"  J836,  nea^ 
Commodore 


11190. 

ie  by  cili- 
vho  sailed 
inton,  and 
Tair  AmcT- 
>f  eighteen. 
)tka  Sound, 
iant  Marti- 
proved,  for 
in  coast,  the 
nuary,  1190, 
lands,  where 
seaman  who 
On  the  fol- 
ay  in  canoes, 
ring  evidently 
seized  in  the 
nder  the  idea, 
The  natives 
ih  grape,  and 
ieted  them,  he 
Three  or  four 
i  to  bring  back 
was  accepted) 
rudder  of  the 
3n  sacrificed  to 
omised  recoin- 
)nciliation ;  but 
supposing  that 
iedthe  ship  in 
ther  from  exas- 
ty,  fired  all  his 
[and  killed, as 
rhich  he  sailed 


better  written  by « 
,  newspapers  of  the 
L  journal  of  CapUffl 
*^  Vancouver  (vol  «• 
Is  as  possible,  Bccotd- 

Iwich  Islands,  fpvM 
|toviewaBafflomtei| 

ietribution." 


1790.]        CAPTURE    or   THE    rAIR   AMERICAN   AT   OWYHEE. 


835 


While  the  Eleonora  was  lying  in  this  bay,  the  natives  of  Owyhee 
signally  avenged  the  s'laughter  of  their  brethren  at  Mowee. 

On  the  5th  of  February,  the  schooner  Fair  American,  which  had 
been  separated  from  the  brig,  anchored  in  the  Bay  of  Toyahyah, 
(now  called  Kawaihae,)  on  the  north-west  side  of  Owyhee,  about 
thirty  miles  north  of  Karakakooa  Bay,  where  trade  was  begun  with 
the  natives.  As  these  people  conducted  themselves  peaceably,  they 
were  allowed  to  come  on  board  the  vessel  without  restriction ;  at 
length,  a  chief  named  Tamaahmoto,  or  Kamamoko,  appeared,  with 
a  number  of  attendants,  to  present  the  captain  with  a  feather  cap, 
and  while  in  the  act  of  placing  this  ornament  on  young  Metcalf 's 
head,  he  seized  him  and  threw  him  overboard,  where  he  was  im- 
mediately killed ;  the  other  seamen,  with  the  excepticm  of  one,  were 
in  like  manner  despatched,  and  the  schooner  was  then  drawn  on 
jhore  and  rifled.  There  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  this  was  done 
in  consequence  of  the  proceedings  of  the  captain  of  the  Eleonora  at 
Mowee,  or,  indeed,  that  those  proceedings  were  known  at  Owyhee 
when  the  schooner  was  taken  ;  on  the  contrary,  Tamaahmoto,  in 
1794,  assured  Vancouver  that  he  was  induced  to  act  as  he  did,  by 
the  ill-treatment  of  Metcalf,  who  had  whipped  him  severely  when 
at  Toyahyah,  in  1789. 

A  plan  was,  at  the  same  time,  formed  by  Tianna  and  Tamaha- 
maha,  the  principal  chiefs  of  the  island,  to  take  the  Eleonora.  The 
boatswain  of  that  brig,  named  John  Young,  hnppr.-jed,  however, 
to  be  on  shore,  and  there  met  with  two  English  seamen,  from  whom 
he  received  information  of  the  plan ;  and  they  succeeded  in  pre- 
vailing on  Tamahamaha  to  allow  them  to  write  a  letter  to  Captain 
Metcalf,  urging  his  immediate  departure,  on  condition  that  they 
should  enter  the  service  of  the  native  chief.  Metcalf  took  their 
advice,  and  sailed  away  without  learning  the  news  of  his  son's  fate. 
Young  also  succeeded  in  saving  the  life  of  Isaac  Davis,  the  mate 
of  the  Fair  American,  who  had  been  severely  wounded  at  the  time 
of  the  capture  of  that  schooner ;  and  these  two  men  remained  in 
the  service  of  Tamahamaha  until  their  deaths.* 

The  ship  Columbia  returned  to  Boston  from  Canton,  under  the 
command  of  Gray,  on  the  10th  of  August,  1790,  as  already  men- 
tioned :  but  the  cargo  of  Chinese  articles  brought  by  her  was  insuf- 
ficient to  cover  the  expenses  of  her  voyage ;  and  her  owners  were 

*  Davis  died  in  1808.    Young  waa,  for  many  yean,  governoi  of  Woahoo,  and  died 
in  1836,  nearly  nmety  yean  old :  for  an  anecdote  illiutratire  of  his  character,  tea 
Commodore  Poiier's  Journal  of  hii  Cruiae  in  the  Pacific,  vol.  ii.  p.  S15. 
29 


%. 


mm 


i- 


■  Mr 


I; 


;ht<   * 


MM 


826 


VOTAQB    or    UfOBAHAM    IN   THE    HOPE,  r 


[1791. 


[%' 


i  U  I 


i- 


ilii 


so  little  satisfied  with  these  results,  that  some  of  them  sold  out  their 
shares  to  the  others,  who,  determining  to  persevere  in  the  enter- 
prise,  refitted  the  Columbia  for  a  new  voyage  of  the  same  kind. 
Before  her  departure,  however,  the  brig  Hope,  of  seventy  tons, 
which  had  also  been  equipped  for  the  North  Pacific  trade,  sailed 
from  Boston,  under  th(  command  of  Joseph  Ingraham,  the  former 
mate  of  the  Columbia;  and  these  vessels  were  followed  by  the 
Hancock,  under  Captain  Crowel,  and  the  Jef  brson,  under  Captain 
Roberts,  likewise  from  Boston,  and  the  Margaret,  under  Captain 
Magee,  from  New  York.  A  short  notice  of  Ingraham's  voyage  will 
be  first  presented. 

The  brig  Hope  quitted  Boston  on  the  16th  of  September,  1790, 
and,  taking  the  usual  course  by  the  Cape  Verd  Islands  and  Brazil, 
she  arrived  on  the  13th  of  January,  1791,  at  the  entrance  of 
Berkeley  Sound,  or  Port  Soledad,  in  the  Falkland  Islands,  where 
she  found  a  Spanish  establishment  on  the  shore,  and  a  Spanish 
vessel  of  war  in  the  harbor.*  Ingraham  was  anxious  to  visit  the 
establishment,  but  the  commandant  was  unwilling  to  allow  him  to 
do  so,  though  he  furnished  him  liberally  with  provisions.  Quitting 
the  Falkland  Islands,  Ingraham  doubled  Cape  Horn,  and,  on  the 
19th  of  April,  he  discovered  six  islands  previously  unknown,  in  the 
centre  of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  between  the  8th  and  the  10th  parallels 
of  latitude,!  to  which  he  gave  the  names  severally  of  Washington, 
Adams,  Franklin,  Knox,  Federal,  and  Lincoln ;  and  after  some  days 

*  ManuBcript  journal  of  the  Hope's  voyage,  written  by  Ingraham. 

t  These  islands  are  situated  a  little  north  of  the  group  called  the  Marquens  de 
Mendoza,  discovered  by  the  Spanish  navigator  Mendana,  in  1595,  and  about  aix 
hundred  miles  north-east  of  Otaheite,  directly  in  the  course  of  vessels  sailing  from 
Cape  Horn  to  the  north-west  coast  of  America,  or  to  China,  to  which  they  offer  con- 
venient places  for  obtaining  water  and  other  refreshments.  They  were  not  seen  by 
Cook,  who  visited  the  Marquesas  in  1774 ;  nor  does  any  notice  of  them  appear  on 
any  chart  or  account  of  earlier  date  than  1791,  when  they  were  discovered  by  Ingra- 
ham, as  above  stated.  They  were  afterwards  seen  successively,  on  the  21st  of  June, 
1791,  by  Marchand,  in  the  French  ship  Solide,  who  named  them  Res  de  la  Riwlu- 
tion;  on  the  30th  of  June,  1792,  by  Hergest,  in  the  British  brig  Daedalus,  aAer  whom 
Vancouver  called  them  Hergest' s  Islands,  though  he  was  well  aware  of  their  previous 
discovery  by  Ingraham ;  and  on  the  6th  of  March,  1793,  by  Roberts,  in  the  Jefferson, 
from  Boston,  who  bestowed  on  them  the  name  of  Washington's  Islands.  The  earliest 
notice  of  them  was  published  in  the  form  of  an  extract  from  Ingraham's  Journal,  in 
the  Massachusetts  Historical  Collection,  at  Boston,  in  1793 :  the  voltmie  of  the  same 
work,  for  1795,  contains  Rober'is's  aicouot  of  his  visit,  after  which  appeared,  in  suc- 
cession, the  accounts  of  Hergest  in  Vancouver's  Journal,  and  of  Marchand ;  and 
they  have  since  been  visited  and  described  by  Krusenstern,  Lisiansky,  Langsdorf, 
Porter,  Belcher,  Wilkes,  and  other  navigators.  Porter,  during  his  cruise  in  the  Pacific, 
in  the  Essex,  in  1813,  remained  some  time  at  Nooahivah,  the  largest  of  the  islands. 
The  recent  occupation  of  this  group  by  the  French  is  well  known.         ,  v   ■ 


out  their 
he  enter- 
,ine  kind, 
inty  tons, 
ide,  sailed 
he  former 
ad  by  the 
er  Captain 
3r  Captain 
voyage  will 

aber,  1790, 
and  Brazil, 
ntrance  of 
inds,  where 
i  a  Spanish 
to  visit  the 
illow  him  to 
J.     duitting 
and,  on  the 
lown,  in  the 
0th  parallels 
Washington, 
ir  some  days 


1791.] 


TOTAOB   or   INORAnAM   IN  THE   HOPS. 


997 


■pent  in  examining  them,  he  took  his  course  for  Owyhee,  where  he 
arrived  on  the  20th  of  May. 

At  Owyhee,  the  Hope  was  visited  by  Tamahamaha,  whose  pov^er 
was  then  rapidly  increasing,  as  well  as  by  his  rival  Tianna ;  and  both 
these  chiefs  were  earnest  in  their  solicitations  that  Ingraham  should 
go  on  shore  and  visit  their  towns.  The  American  captain,  however, 
feeling  some  distrust,  did  not  think  it  prudent  to  leave  his  vessel ;  and, 
after  obtaining  some  provisions  and  water,  he  sailed  to  the  adjacent 
Island  of  Mowee,  where  he  received  from  two  w^hite  men,  who 
escaped  to  the  Hope,  the  news  of  the  capture  of  the  schooner  Fair 
American,  and  the  murder  of  her  crew  at  Owyhee,  in  February  of 
the  preceding  year.  He  then  had  reason  to  congratulate  himself  at 
having  resisted  the  invitations  of  Tamahamaha  and  Tianna,  as  he 
had  no  doubt  that  he  and  his  vessel  and  crew  would  otherwise  have 
been  sacrificed  to  their  hatred  or  cupidity.  At  Mowee,  on  the 
26th,  the  brig  was  honored  by  the  presence  of  Titeree,  or  Kahikili, 
the  king,  and  Taio,  a  principal  chief ,  and  Ingraham  obtained  from 
them  the  liberation  of  an  American  seaman,  who  had  been,  for 
some  time,  detained  as  prisoner  in  the  island.  On  the  following 
day,  at  Woahoo,  the  natives  surrounded  the  vessel  in  their  canoes, 
to  the  number  of  many  thousands,  evidently  with  the  intention  of 
taking  her ;  and  it  became  necessary  to  fire  several  rnuskets  upon 
them  before  she  could  be  freed  from  the  danger. 

On  the  Ist  of  June,  Ingraham  left  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and  on 
the  29th  of  the  same  month  he  dropped  anchor  in  a  harbor  on  the 
south-east  side  of  Queen  Charlotte's,  or  Washington's,  Island,  to 
which  he  gave  the  name  of  Magee's  Sound,  in  honor  of  one  of  the 
owners  of  his  vessel.  On  the  coasts  of  this  island,  and  of  the  other 
islands,  and  the  continent  adjacent  on  the  north  and  east,  he  spent 
the  summer  in  trading,  and  collecting  information  as  to  the  gec^- 
raphy  and  natural  history,  and  the  languages,  manners,  and  customs, 
of  the  inhabitants,  on  all  which  subjects  his  journal  contains 
minute  and  interesting  details ;  and  at  the  end  of  the  season  he 
took  his  departure  for  China,  where  he  arrived  on  the  1st  of  De- 
cember, 1791. 

At  Macao,  Ingraham  found  the  French  ship  Solide,  under 
Captain  Marchand,  whose  visit  to  the  north-west  coast  of  Amer- 
ica, in  the  preceding  summer,  has  been  already  mentioned ;  and  he 
received  much  kindness,  which  he  acknowledges  by  grateful  expres- 
sions in  his  journal,  from  Roblet,  the  surgeon,  and  Chanal,  the  first 


I 


4'   t* 


^-.^^'^^'^ 


996 


KCNDmiOK'S    SPIOULATIOIVa    llf   THE    PACITIC. 


[1791. 


¥. 


officer  of  that  veasel.  To  these  gentlemen  he  alio  communicated 
the  particulars  of  his  voyage ;  and  thus  they  learned,  to  their  great 
regret,  that  they  liad  been  anticipated,  by  the  American  captain,  in 
a  discovery  which  was  expected  by  them  to  cast  considerable  iclat 
on  their  expedition.  Marchand  had,  in  the  month  of  June  previous, 
seen  a  group  of  islands  in  the  centre  of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  of  which 
he  believed  himself  to  be  the  discoverer,  as  they  were  not  described 
in  any  narrative  or  chart  then  published ;  and,  under  this  impres- 
sion, he  named  them  lies  de  la  Rivolution,  and  had  just  sent  an 
account  of  them  to  France,  which  was  submitted  formally  to  the 
National  Assembly :  on  examining  the  journal  of  the  Hope,  however, 
he  could  have  no  doubt  that  this  was  the  same  group  which  had 
been  found  by  Ingraham  in  April ;  and  the  fact  is  admitted,  though 
with  evident  reluctance,  in  the  narrative  of  his  voyage.* 

Captain  Kendrick,  in  the  Washington,  which  had  been  altered 
into  a  brig,  also  arrived  at  Macao  while  the  Hope  was  lying  there. 
He  had  been  engaged,  since  1789,  in  various  speculations,  one  of 
which  was  the  collection  and  transportation  to  China  of  the  odor- 
iferous wood  called  sandal,  which  grows  in  many  of  the  tropical 
islands  of  the  Pacific,  and  is  in  great  demand  throughout  the 
Celestial  Empire.  Vancouver  pronounced  this  scheme  chimerical ; 
but  experience  has  proved  that  it  was  founded  on  just  calculations, 
and  the  business  has  been  ever  since  prosecuted  with  advantage, 
especially  by  the  Americans. 

Another  of  Kendrick's  speculations  has  not  hitherto  produced 
any  fruit.  In  the  summer  of  1791,  he  purchased  from  Maquinna, 
Wicanish,  and  other  chiefs,  several  large  tracts  of  land  near  Nootka 
Sound,  for  which  he  obtained  deeds  duly  marked  by  those  person- 
ages, and  witnessed  by  the  officers  and  men  of  the  Washington. 
Attempts  were  made,  by  the  owners  of  that  vessel,  to  sell  these 
lands  at  London  in  1793,  but  no  purchasers  were  found ;  and 
applications  have  since  been  addressed,  by  -the  legal  representatives 
of  the  owners  and  of  Kendrick,  to  the  government  of  the  United 

*  The  editor,  Fleurieu,  thus  ingeniously  concludes  the  discussion  as  to  the  fint  dia- 
covery  of  the  islands :  "  Captain  Marchand  undoubtedly  cannot  aspire  to  the  honor 
of  priority ;  but,  like  the  American  captain  who  preceded  him,  he  has  not,  on  that 
account,  the  less  pretension  to  the  honor  of  the  discovery ;  for  he  could  not  know,  in 
the  month  of  June,  1791,  while  he  was  navigating  the  great  ocean,  that,  a  month  be- 
fore, another  navigator,  standing  in  the  same  course  with  himself,  had  made  the  same 
discovery."  The  king  of  the  French  has  nevertheless  been  pleased  to  bestow  a  gold 
medal  on  one  of  the  surviving  owners  of  the  Solide,  on  the  ground  of  the  discovery  of 
those  islands  by  Marchand,  as  expressly  declared  in  the  report  of  his  minister  of  ma- 
rine, published  in  the  Moniteur  of  May  35th,  1843. 


[1791. 

nunicated 
heir  great 
nptaii),  in 
ruble  iclat 
i  previous, 
,  of  which 
described 
lis  impres- 
Bt  sent  an 
ally  to  the 
3,  however, 
which  had 
ted,  though 

een  altered 
lying  there, 
ans,  one  of 
if  the  odor- 
the  tropical 
)Ughout  the 
I  chimerical ; 
1  calculations, 
I  advantage, 

to  produced 
Maquinna, 
near  Noolka 
lose  person- 
Washington, 
sell  these 
found;  and 
presentatives 
the  United 

to  the  first  di«- 
ire  to  the  honor 
has  not,  on  that 
lid  not  know,  in 
lat,  a  month  be- 
made  the  same 
.  bestow  a  gold 
the  discovery  ej 
minister  of  ma- 


1791.1 


BBCOIID   TOTAOE    OF   THC    COLUMBIA. 


999 


to 


States,  for  a  confirmation  of  tho  title.*  That  the  lands  were  thus 
■old  by  the  savage  chiefs,  there  is  no  reason  to  doubt ;  and  Maquinna 
or  Wicanish  would  as  readily  have  conveyed  the  whole  of  America 
to  any  one  for  the  consideration  of  a  copper  kettle :  but  the  validity 
of  the  acquisition  will  scarcely  bo  recognized  by  the  civilized  nation 
which  may  hereafter  hold  the  sovereignty  of  the  country  about 
Nootka  Sound.  Neither  Kcndrick  nor  his  vessel  ever  returned  to 
America :  he  was  killed,  in  1793,  at  Karakakooa  Bay,  in  Owyhee, 
by  a  ball  accidentally  fired  from  a  British  vessel,  while  saluting  him. 

At  Canton,  Ingraham  disposed  of  his  furs  advantageously,  and 
vested  the  proceeds  in  teas,  which  he  sent  to  Boston  by  a  vessel 
chartered  for  the  purpose.  He  then  sailed,  on  the  3d  of  April,  for 
the  north-west  coasts  of  America,  and  spent  the  summei  jn  trading 
in  and  about  Queen  Charlotte's  Island,  which  was  then  the  principal 
resort  of  the  Americans.  r.r  •; 

Tho  Columbia,  under  her  former  captain,  Gray,  left  Boston  on 
the  28th  of  September,  1790,  ten  days  after  the  departure  of  the 
Hope ;  f  and,  without  the  occurrence  of  any  thing  worthy  of  note 
on  her  way,  she  arrived  at  Clyoquot,  near  the  entrance  of  the  Stra^ 
of  Fuca,  on  the  5th  of  June,  1791.  Thence  she  proceeded,  in  \ 
few  days,  to  the  eastern  side  of  Queen  Charlotte's  Island,  on  which, 
and  on  the  coasts  of  the  continent  and  islands  in  its  vicinity,  she 
remained  until  September,  engaged  in  trading  and  exploring. 
During  this  time,  Gray  examined  many  of  the  inlets  and  passages 
between  the  54th  and  the  56th  parallels,  in  one  of  which  —  most 
probably  the  same  afterwards  called  by  Vancouver  the  Portland 

*  The  circular  addressed  by  the  owners  of  the  Washington,  ou  this  occasion,  is  a 
curious  document.  It  is  written  in  four  languages,  and  is  couched  in  terms  the 
most  unspecific  which  could  have  been  selected.  Tho  ^'■inhabitants  of  Europe"  are 
informed  that,  "  in  1787,  Captain  J.  Kendrick,  while  prosecuting  n  advantageous 
voyage  with  the  natives  for  furs,  purchased  of  them,  for  the  own" ':. '  tract  of  de< 
lightful  country,  comprehending  four  degrees  of  latitude,  or  two  hunii/ed  and  forty 
miles  square ; "  and  that  "  such  as  may  be  inclined  to  associate,  for  seitling  a  com- 
monwealth on  their  own  code  of  laws,  on  a  spot  of  the  globe  nov;here  surpassed  in 
delightful  and  healthy  climate,  and  fertile  soil,  claimed  by  no  civilized  nation,  and 
purchased,  under  a  sacred  treaty  of  peace  and  commerce,  and  fir  a  valuable  considera- 
tion, of  the  friendly  natives,  may  have  the  best  opportunity  of  trying  the  result  of  such 
an  enterprise."  Of  the  situation  of  this  tract  of  delightful  country  we  learn  nothing 
from  the  circular,  except  that  it  lies  in  America.  The  deeds  for  the  lands  are  de- 
clarcd  to  have  been  registered  in  the  office  of  the  American  consul  at  Macao ;  and 
these  deeds,  or  some  of  them,  have  been  lately  published,  referring  only  to  the  terri- 
tories about  Nootka  Sound,  which,  though  including  all  the  dominions  of  the  chieA 
conveying  them,  do  not  amount  to  one  twenty-fourth  part  of  two  hundred  and  forty 
miles  square. 

<  Log-took  of  the  Columbia,  from  September  28th,  1790,  to  February  30th,  1792. 


t'  1 


:« 


II 


'  Is    ' 


\   ? 


im 


230 


THE   COLUBIBIA   WINTERS    AT   CLTOQVOT. 


[1792. 


Canal-— he  penetrated  from  its  entrance,  in  the  latitude  of  54 
degrees  33  minutes,  to  the  distance  of  a  hundred  miles  north- 
eastward, without  reaching  its  termination.  This  inlet  he  supposed 
to  be  the  Rio  de  Reyes  of  Admiral  Font^ ;  a  part  of  it  was  named 
by  him  Massacre  Cove,  in  commemoration  of  the  murder  of  Cas- 
well, the  second  mate,  and  two  seamen  of  his  vessel,  by  the 
natives,  on  its  8hore,  on  the  22d  of  August.  Shortly  after  this 
melancholy  occurrence,  the  Columbia  fell  in  with  the  Hope,  and 
tlie  two  captains  communicated  to  each  other,  though  apparently 
with  some  reserve,  the  results  of  their  observations.  They  then 
separated,  Ingraham  going  to  China,  as  above  related,  while  Gray 
returned  to  Clyoquot. 

At  Clyoquot,  the  crew  of  the  Columbia  passed  the  winter  in  a 
fortified  habitation,  which  they  erected  on  the  shore  of  the  bay, 
and  called  Fort  Defiance ;  and  they  were  employed  in  building  a 
small  vessel,  which  was  launched,  and  named  the  Adventure. 
Whilst  preparing  for  sea,  they  were  visited  by  Tatoochseatticus 
and  Wicanish,  the  principal  chiefs  of  the  surrounding  country, 
with  a  number  of  followers,  between  whom  and  a  Sandwich 
Islander  on  board  the  Columbia  it  soon  became  evident  that  some 
understanding  had  been  established.  Gray's  suspicions  being  ex- 
cited, he  questioned  the  Sandwich  Islander,  who  at  length  confessed 
that  the  Indians  had  formed  a  plan  for  the  seizure  of  the  vessels, 
and  the  murder  of  their  crews,  and  had  promised  to  spare  his  life, 
and  make  him  a  chief,  if  he  would  aid  them  by  wetting  the  priming 
of  all  the  guns  at  a  particular  time.  Thus  forewarned,  the  Ameri- 
cans were  on  their  guard ;  and  the  savages,  who  surrounded  the 
vessel  on  the  following  day,  were  kept  at  a  distance. 

In  the  spring  of  1792,  the  Adventure  sailed  for  Queen  Char- 
lotte's Island,  under  the  command  of  Haswell,  the  first  mate  of  the 
Columbia ;  and  Gray  took  his  departure  in  the  ship,  on  a  cruise 
southward  along  the  coasts  of  the  continent,  the  particulars  of  which 
will  appear  in  the  next  chapter. 


S31 


CHAPTER  XI. 

1792  TO  17^.  ' 

Vancouver  and  Broughton  arrive  on  the  American  Coasts  in  1792,  and  meet  with 
Gray,  who  informs  them  of  his  Discovery  of  the  Columbia  River  —  The  Strait  of 
Fuca  surveyed  by  Vancouver,  Galiano,  and  Valdes  —  Negotiations  between  Van- 
couver and  Quadra  at  Nootka  —  Vancouver's  Injustice  to  the  Americans  — 
Broughton's  Examination  of  the  lower  Part  of  the  Columbia  River  —  Vancou- 
ver's Proceedings  at  the  Sandwich  Islands  —  He  completes  the  Survey  of  the 
North- West  Coasts  of  America,  and  returns  to  England  —  The  Spaniards  abandon 
Nootka  —  Conclusions  with  Regard  to  the  Dispute  between  Great  Britain  and 
Spain,  and  the  Convention  of  1790. 

The  viceroy  of  Mexico,  count  de  Revillagigedo,  on  learning  the 
results  of  the  voyages  of  Fidalgo,  Quimper,  and  Malaspina,  along 
the  north-west  coasts  of  America,  ordered  three  other  vessels  to  be 
prepared,  for  continuing  the  exploration  of  those  coasts.  In  one  of 
them,  the  corvette  Aransasu,  Lieutenant  Jacinto  Caamano  was 
directed  to  seek,  particularly  near  the  53d  degree  of  latitude,  for 
the  mouth  of  the  Rio  de  Reyes,  through  which  Admiral  Font£ 
was  said  to  have  sailed,  in  1640,  north-eastward,  into  a  lake  com- 
municating with  the  Atlantic;  while  Lieutenants  Dionisio  Alcala 
Galiano  and  Cayetano  Valdes  were  to  survey  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  in 
the  small  schooners  Sutil  and  Mexicana.  These  vessels  sailed  from 
San  Bias  in  the  spring  of  1792,  and  arrived  in  May  at  Nootka  Sound, 
whence  they  soon  after  departed  on  their  respective  expeditions.* 

Captain  Bodega  y  Quadra,  the  superintendent  of  the  marine 
department  of  San  Bias,  was  at  the  same  time  despatched  to 
Nootka,  to  take  the  command  of  the  forces  in  that  quarter,  and  to 
treat  with  Captain  Vancouver,  who  was  expected  to  arrive  there  in 
the  following  summer,  with  regard  to  the  lands  and  buildings 
claimed  by  British  subjects,  in  virtue  of  the  first  and  second  articles 
of  the  convention  of  1790.     He  was  instructed,  in  case  it  should 

*  The  works  which  have  served  principally  as  authorities  for  the  accounts  in  this 
chapter  are  —  the  journal  of  Captain  George  Vancouver,  three  vols.  4to.,  published 
at  Londori  in  1797  —  the  journal  of  Galiano  and  Valdes  —  and  the  manuscript  journal 
of  the  voyage  of  the  American  brig  Hope,  written  by  her  captain,  J.  Ingraham  —  with 
others,  to  which  reference  will  be  made 


i  <i'?  i\l 


i    i. 


232 


VANCOUVER   REACHES   THE    NORTH-WEST    COAST. 


[1792. 


i4  ■ 


be  requisite,  to  abandon  Nootka,  and  withdraw  all  the  Spanish 
forces  and  settlers  to  some  convenient  point  of  the  coast  farther 
south ;  and,  in  anticipation  of  such  a  contingency,  a  vessel  was  sent 
from  San  Bias,  under  the  command  of  Fidalgo,  to  seek  for  a  proper 
spot,  and  make  prepakutions  on  it  for  a  permanent  establishment. 

Vancouver  and  Broughton  reached  the  American  coast  in  April, 
1792,  a  little  south  of  Cape  Mendocino,  whence  they  sailed  slowly 
northward,  to  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  which  they  were  instructed  par- 
ticularly  to  explore.  On  their  way,  they  carefully  examined  the 
shores,  and  determined  the  geographical  positions  of  all  the  most 
prominent  points,  comparing  the  results  of  their  observations  with 
those  obtained  by  Cook  and  others  who  had  preceded  them.  Near 
the  43d  degree  of  latitude,  they  sought  in  vain  for  the  river  which 
Martin  de  Aguilar  was  said  to  have  seen,  entering  the  Pacific  there- 
abouts, in  1603 ;  and  they  appeared  inclined  to  admit  as  identical 
with  the  Cape  Blanco  of  that  navigator,  a  high,  whitish  promontory, 
in  the  latitude  of  42  degrees  52  minutes,  to  which  they,  however, 
did  not  scruple  to  assign  the  name  of  Cape  Orford. 

Vancouver  also  observed  with  attention  the  Deception  Bay  of 
Meares,  which  was  i,epresented  on  Spanish  charts  as  the  mouth  of 
a  river.  Of  this  part  of  his  voyage,  he  presents  the  following 
account  in  his  journal,  under  date  of 

"  April  27th.  —  Noon  brought  us  up  with  a  conspicuous  point 
of  land,  composed  of  a  cluster  of  hummocks,  moderately  high,  and 
projecting  into  the  sea.  On  the  south  side  of  this  promontory  was 
the  appearance  of  an  inlet,  or  small  river,  the  land  not  indicating  it 
to  be  of  any  great  extent,  nor  did  it  seem  to  be  accessible  for  ves- 
sels of  our  burden,  as  the  breakers  extended  from  the  above  point, 
two  or  three  miles  into  the  ocean,  until  they  joined  those  on  the 
beach,  nearly  four  leagues  farther  south.  On  reference  to  Mr. 
Itleares's  description  of  the  coast  south  of  this  promontory,  I  was 
at  first  inclined  to  believe  it  was  Cape  Shoalwater  •,  but,  on  ascer- 
taining its  latitude,  I  presumed  it  to  be  that  which  he  calls  Cape 
Disappoint -nent,  and  the  opening  south  of  it  Deception  Bay.  This 
cape  we  found  to  be  in  latitude  of  46  degrees  19  minutes,  longi- 
tude 236  degrees  6  minutes  [east].  The  sea  had  now  changed 
from  its  natural  to  river-colored  water,  the  probable  consequence 
of  some  streams  falling  into  the  bay,  or  into  the  opening  north  of 
it,  through  the  low  land.  Not  considering  this  opening  worthy  of 
more  attention,  I  continued  our  pursuit  to  the  north-west,  being 
desirous  to  embrace  the  advantages  of  the  now  prevailing  breeze  and 
pleasant  weather,  so  favorable  to  an  examination  of  the  coasts." 


V 


e  Spanish 
ast  farther 
i\  was  sent 
>r  a  proper 
shment. 
It  in  April, 
iled  slowly 
ructed  par- 
eimin^d  the 
11  the  most 
mtions  with 
lem.     Near 
river  which 
acific  there- 
as  identical 
promontory, 
By,  however, 

)tion  Bay  of 
16  mouth  of 
he  following 


1792.]  VANCOUVER  MEETS  GRAY  NEAR  THE  STRAIT  OF  FUCA.   333 

Vancouver  accordingly  sailed  onwards,  to  the  entrance  of  the 
Strait  of  Fuca,  which  he  was  eager  to  explore;  having,  as  he 
believed,  ascertained  that  "  the  several  large  rivers  and  capacious 
inlets,  that  have  been  described  as  discharging  their  contents  into 
the  Pacific,  between  the  40th  and  the  48th  degrees  of  north  lati- 
tude, were  reduced  to  brooks  insufficient  for  our  vessels  to  navigate^ 
or  to  bays  inaccessible  as  harbors  for  refitting."  Again  he  says, 
"  Considering  ourselves  now  on  the  point  of  commencing  an  exami- 
nation of  an  entirely  new  region,  I  cannot  take  leave  of  the  coast 
already  known,  without  obtruding  a  short  remark  on  that  part  of 
the  continent,  comprehending  a  space  of  nearly  two  hundred  and 
fifteen  leagues,  on  which  our  inquiries  had  been  lately  employed, 
under  the  most  fortunate  and  favorable  circumstances  of  wind  and 
weather.  So  minutely  has  this  extensive  coast  been  inspected,  that  the 
surf  has  been  constantly  seen  to  brealc  on  its  shores  from  the  mast' 
head;  and  it  was  but  in  a  few  small  intervals  only  where  our 
distance  precluded  its  being  visible  from  the  deck.  Whenever  the 
weather  prevented  our  making  free  with  the  shore,  or  on  our  haul- 
ing off  for  the  night,  me  return  of  fine  weather  and  of  daylight 
uniformly  brought  us,  if  not  t6  the  identical  spot  we  had  departed 
from,  at  least  within  a  few  miles  of  it,  and  never  beyond  the 
northern  limits  of  the  coast  which  we  had  previously  seen.  An 
examination  so  directed,  and  circumstances  happily  concurring  to 
permit  its  being  so  executed,  afforded  the  most  complete  opportunity 
of  determining  its  various  turnings  and  mndings,  as  also  the  position 
of  all  its  conspicuous  points,  ascertained  by  meridional  altitudes  for 
the  latitude,  and  observations  for  the  chronometer,  which  we  had  the 
good  fortune  to  make  constantly  once,  and  in  general  twice,  every 
day,  the  preceding  one  only  excepted.  It  must  be  considered  a  very 
singular  circumstance,  that,  in  so  great  an  extent  of  sea-coast,  toe 
'  should  not  until  now  have  seen  the  appearance  of  any  opening  in  its  shore 
which  presented  any  certain  prospect  of  affording  a  shelter,  the  whole 
coast  forming  one  compact  and  nearly  straight  barrier  against  the  sea." 

On  the  same  day,  the  29th  of  April,  1792,  Vancouver  writes  in 
his  journal,  "  At  four  o'clock,  a  sail  was  discovered  to  the  westward, 
standing  in  shore.  This  was  a  very  great  novelty,  not  having  seen 
any  vessel  but  our  consort  during  the  last  eight  months.  She  soon 
hoisted  American  colors,  and  fired  a  gun  to  leeward.  At  six  we 
spoke  her ;  she  proved  to  be  the  ship  Columbia,  commanded  by 
Captain  Robert  Gray,  belonging  to  Boston,  whence  she  had  been 
absent  nineteen  months.  Having  little  doubt  of  his  being  the  same 
30 


'  (ij 


Wm 


m 


234 


GUAT  S    ACCOUNT    OF    HIS    DISCOVERIES. 


[1792. 


person  who  had  formerly  commanded  the  sloop  Washington,  I 
desired  he  would  bring  to,  und  sent  Mr.  Puget  and  Mr.  Menzies  on 
board,  to  acquire  such  information  as  might  be  serviceable  in  our 
future  operations.  On  the  return  of  the  boat,  we  found  our  con- 
jectures had  not  been  ill  grounded ;  that  this  was  the  same  gentle- 
man who  had  commanded  the  sloop  Washington,  at  the  time,  we 
are  informed,  she  '  .d  made  a  very  singular  voyage  behind  Nootka. 
It  was  not  a  little  reniarkable,  that,  on  our  approach  to  the  entrance 
of  this  inland  sea,  w  should  fall  in  with  the  identical  person  who, 
it  was  said,  had  bailed  through  it.  His  relation,  however,  differed 
very  materially  from  that  published  in  England.  It  is  not  possible 
to  conceive  any  one  to  be  more  astonished  than  was  Mr.  Gray,  on 
his  being  made  acquainted  that  his  authority  had  been  quoted,  and 
the  track  pointed  out  that  he  had  been  said  to  have  made  in  the 
sloop  Washington ;  in  contradiction  to  which,  he  assured  the  of- 
ficers that  he  had  penetrated  only  fifty  miles  into  the  straits  in 
question,  in  an  east-south-east  direction ;  that  he  found  the  passage 
five  leagues  wide,  and  that  he  understood  from  the  natives  that  the 
opening  extended  a  considerable  distance  to  the  northward ;  that 
this  was  all  the  information  he  had  acquired  respecting  this  inland 
sea,  and  that  he  returned  into  the  ocean  by  the  same  way  he  had 
entered  at.  The  inlet  he  supposed  to  be  the  same  that  De  Fuca 
had  discovered,  which  opinion  seemed  to  be  universally  received  by 
all  the  modern  visitors.  He  likev/ise  informed  them  of  his  having 
been  off  the  mouth  of  a  river,  in  the  latitude  of  46  degrees  10 
minutes,  where  the  outset  or  reflux  was  so  strong  as  to  prevent  his 
entering  for  nine  days.  This  was  probably  the  opening  passed  by 
us  on  the  forenoon  of  the  27th,  and  was  apparently  inaccessible, 
not  from  the  current,  but  from  the  breakers  that  extended  across  it. 
He  had  also  entered  another  inlet  to  the  northward,  in  latitude  of 
54}  degrees,  in  which  he  had  sailed  to  the  latitude  of  56  degrees, ' 
without  discovering  its  termination.  The  south  point  of  entrs  ice 
into  De  Fuca's  Straits  he  stated  to  be  in  48  degrees  24  minutes ; 
and  he  conceived  our  distance  from  it  to  be  about  eight  leagues. 
The  last  winter  he  had  spent  in  Port  Cox,  or,  as  the  natives  call  it, 
Clyoquot,  from  whence  he  had  sailed  but  a  few  days,"  «fec. 

The  part  of  this  account  relating  to  the  Strait  of  Fuca  appears 
to  have  been  received  with  much  satisfaction  by  Vancouver,  as  it 
seemed  to  assure  him  that  he  had  not  been  anticipated  in  the 
exploration  of  that  passage ;  to  Gray's  statement  of  his  discoverv  of 
a  river  emptying  into  the  Pacific,  in  the  latitude  of  46  degrees  10 


1792.] 


ORAr  S    ACCOUNT    OF    HIS    DISCOVERIES. 


335 


lington,  1 
[enzies  on 
)le  in  our 
I  our  con- 
ne  gentle- 
j  time,  we 
id  Nootka. 
le  entrance 
lerson  who, 
er,  diflfered 
tot  possible 
ir.  Gray,  on 
quoted,  and 
lade  in  the 
ired  the  of- 
le  straits  in 

the  passage 
ives  that  the 
thward;  that 
g  this  inland 

way  he  had 
hat  De  Fuca 
y  received  by 
of  his  having 
5  degrees  10 

)  prevent  his 

ig  passed  by 
inaccessible, 

ded  across  it. 

latitude  of 

56  degrees,' 

of  entra  ice 

24  minutes; 

sight  leagues, 
itives  call  it, 

&.C. 

'uca  appears 

|ncou"er,  as  it 

»ated  in  the 

discoverv  of 

t6  degrees  10 


minutes,  he  gave  little,  or  rather  no  credit,  being  content  with  his 
own  examination  of  that  part  of  the  coast.  On  the  day  after  his 
meeting  with  the  Columbia,  he  writes,  "  The  river  mentioned  by 
Mr.  Gray  should,  from  the  latitude  he  assigned  to  it,  have  existence 
in  the  bay  south  of  Cape  Disappointment.  This  \re  passed  in  the 
forenoon  of  the  27th  ;  and,  as  I  then  observed,  if  any  inlet  or  river 
should  be  found,  it  must  be  a  very  intricate  one,  and  inaccessible  to 
vessels  of  our  burden,  owing  to  the  reefs  and  broken  water,  which 
then  appeared  in  its  neighborhood.  Mr.  Gray  stated  that  he  had 
been  several  days  attempting  to  enter  it,  which,  at  length,  he  was 
unable  to  effect,  in  consequence  '^f  a  very  strong  outset.  This  is 
a  phenomenon  difficult  to  account  'or,  as,  in  most  cases  where  there 
are  outsets  of  such  strength  on  a  sea-coast,  there  are  corresponding 
tides  setting  in.  Be  that,  however,  as  it  may,  /  was  thoroughly 
convinced,  as  were  also  most  persons  of  observation  on  board,  that 
we  could  not  possibly  have  passed  any  safe  navigable  opening,  harbor, 
or  place  of  security  for  shipping,  on  this  coast,  from  Cape  Mendocino 
to  the  promontory  of  Classet,  [Cape  Flattery,  at  the  entrance  of  the 
Strait  of  Fuca;]  nor  had  we  any  reason  tr  alter  our  opinions, 
notwithstanding  that  theoretical  geographers  have  thought  proper 
to  assert  in  that  space  the  existence  of  arms  of  the  ocean  commu- 
nicating with  a  mediterranean  sea,  and  extensive  rivers  with  safe 
and  convenient  ports." 

Having  thus  recorded  his  convictions,  the  British  navigator 
proceeded  to  survey  the  Strait  of  Fuca ;  whilst  the  American  fur 
trader  sailed  townrds  the  mouth  of  the  river,  into  which  he  resolved, 
if  possible,  to  effect  an  entranr  e. 

After  parting  with  the  English  ships.  Gray  sailed  along  the  coast 
of  the  continent  to  the  south,  and,  on  the  7th  of  May,  he  "  saw 
an  entrance  which  had  a  very  good  appearance  of  a  harbor,"  in  the 
latitude  of  46  degrees  58  minutes.  Passing  through  this  entrance, 
he  found  himself  in  a  bay  "  well  sheltered  from  the  sea  by  long 
sand-bars,  and  spits,"  where  he  remained  at  anchor  three  days, 
engaged  in  trading  with  the  natives ;  and  he  then  resumed  his 
voyage,  bestowing  on  the  place  thus  discovered  the  name  of  Bui- 
finch's  Harbor,  in  honor  of  one  of  the  owners  of  his  ship. 

At  daybreak  on  the  11th,  after  leaving  Bulfinch's  Harbor,  Gray 
observed  "  the  entrance  of  his  desired  port,  bearing  east-south-east, 
distant  six  leagues  ; "  and  running  into  it,  with  all  sails  set,  between 
the  breakers,  (which  Meares  and  Vancouver  pronounce  impassable,) 
he  anchored,  at  one  o'clock,  *'  in  a  large  river  of  fresh  water,"  ten 


i!if 


m 


886 


Wmy   DISCOVBRED   THE   COLUMBIA? 


[1795?. 


miles  above  it»  moucti.  At  this  spot  he  remained  three  days,  en- 
gaged in  trading  and  filling  his  casks  with  water,  and  then  sailed 
up  the  river  about  twelve  or  fifteen  miles  along  its  northern  shore ; 
where,  finding  that  he  co^ild  proceed  no  farther,  from  hnving  "  faken 
the  wroiig  channel,"  he  again  came  to  anchor.  During  tjie  v/eek 
which  followed,  he  made  several  attempts  to  <!uit  iliO  river,  but 
was  constantly  baffl()d,  until,  at  length,  on  the  20fh,  he.  r rossed  the 
bar  at  the  kviouth,  by  beating  ovm-  it  with  a  u'lrtcrly  v-ncV  .ind 
regained  the  Pacific.'"' 

On  leaving  the  river.  Gray  gave  to  it  the  name  vi'.  his  ship — the 
Columbia  —  which  it  still  bears;  Uough  attempts  are  made  to  fix 
upon  it  that  of  Oregon,  on  the  strength  of  the  ats^ounts  whi^-'t. 
Carver  pretended  to  have  collected,  in  llu6,  anions;  the  Indiai«  of 
the  Upper  Mississippi,  respecting  a  River  Ore  crop,  riisir>g  ni"r  Lah 
Superior,  and  emptying  into  the  Strait  of  Anitin.f  The  t-.*;etnity 
of  the  fian.l-bank,  projectijig  into  the  sea  on  the  south  side  of  its  en- 
trance, v/at  f  ailed  by  Oray  Point  Adams ;  and  he  assigned  the  name 
of  Cape  F<:ncock  to  the  opposite  promontory,  on  the  north  side,  be- 
ing ignovaiii  that  ]Meares  had  already  called  it  Cape  Disappointment, 
in  token  of  the  unsuccessful  result  of  his  search  for  the  river. 

The  principal  circumstances  relating  to  ihe  discovery  of  this 
river,  the  greatest  which  enters  the  Pacific  from  America,  have 
now  been  fairly  presMited.  It  has  been  shown  —  that  the  opening 
Uirough  which  its  waters  are  discharged  into  the  ocean  was  first 
seen  in  August,  1776,  by  the  Spanish  navigator  Heceta,J  and  was 
distinguished  on  Spanish  charts,  within  the  thirteen  years  next 
following,  as  the  mouth  of  the  River  San  Roqiie  —  that  it  was 
examined  in  July,  1788,  by  Meares,^  who  quitted  it  with  the  con- 
viction that  no  river  existed  there  —  and  that  this  opinion  of 
Meares  was  subscribed,  without  qualification,  by  Vancouver,  after  he 
had  minutely  examined  that  coast,  <'  under  the  most  favorable  con- 
ditions of  wind  and  weather,"  and  notwithstanding  the  assurances 
of  Gray  to  the  contrary.  Had  Gray,  after  parting  with  the  English 
ships,  not  returned  to  the  river,  and  ascended  it  as  he  did,  there  is 
every  reason  to  believe  that  it  would  have  long  remained  unknown ; 
for  the  assertions  of  Vancouver  that  no  opening,  harbor,  or  place  of 
refuge  for  vessels,  was  to  be  found  between  Cape  Mendocino  and  the 

*  See  the  extract  from  the  log-book  of  the  Columbia,  containing  the  account  of 
the  entrance  of  Gray  into  the  river,  among  the  Proofs  and  Illustrations,  in  the  latter 
part  of  this  volume,  under  the  letter  £,  No.  2. 

t  See  p.  142.  t  See  p.  120.      v^       §  See  p.  177. 


V 


lt&2.1 


WHO   DISOOTERED  THE   COLVUBIA  ? 


237 


Strait  of  Fiua,  and  that  this  part  of  the  coast  formed  one  compact, 
solid,  and  nearly  straight,  barrier  against  the  sea,  would  have  served 
completely  to  overthrow  the  evidence  of  the  American  fur  trader, 
and  to  prevent  any  further  attempts  to  examine  those  shores,  or 
even  to  approach  them.* 

From  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  River,  Gray  sailed  to  the  east 
coast  of  Queen  Charlotte's  Island,  near  which  his  ship  struck  on  a 
rock,  and  was  so  much  injured  that  she  was  with  difficulty  kept 
afloat  until  she  reached  Nootka  Sound,  where  the  damage  was 
repaired.  The  Hope  also  arrived  at  Nootka  at  this  time,  and 
Gray  communicated  the  particulars  of  his  recent  discoveries  to 
Ingraham,  and  to  the  Spanich  conmiandant  Quadra,  to  whom  he 
also  gave  charts  and  descriptions  of  Bulfinch's  Harbor,  and  of 
the  mouth  of  the  Columbia.  On  this  occasion,  moreover,  the  two 
American  captains  addressed  to  Quadra,  at  his  request,  a  letter  f 
containing  a  narrative  of  the  transactions  at  Nootka  in  1789,  to 
which  particular  reference  will  be  hereafter  made.  Having  soon 
completed  their  business  on  the  north-west  coasts,  Gray  and  Ingra- 
ham departed  severally  for  Canton,  in  September,  and  thence  they 
sailed  to  the  United  States.  % 


v-i  Ji 


*  It  was,  nevertheless,  insisted,  on  the  part  of  the  British  government,  in  a  discus- 
sion  with  the  United  States,  in  1826,  that  the  merit  of  discovering  the  Columbia 
Idongs  to  Meares!  "that,  in  1788,  four  years  before  Gray  entered  the  mouth  of 
the  Columbia  River,  Mr.  Meares,  a  lieutenant  of  the  royal  navy,  who  had  been  sent 
by  the  East  India  Company  on  a  trading  expedition  to  the  north-west  coast  of 
America,  had  already  minutely  explored  the  coast  from  the  49th  to  the  54th  degree 
of  north  latitude ;  had  taken  formal  possession  of  the  Straits  of  De  Fuca  in  the  name 
of  his  sovereign  ;  had  purchased  land,  trafficked  and  formed  treaties  with  the  natives ; 
and  had  actually  entered  the  Bay  of  the  Columbia,  to  the  northern  headland  of 
which  he  gave  the  name  of  .Cape  Disappointment,  a  name  which  it  bears  to  this 
day ; "  and  that  "  if  any  claim  to  these  countries,  as  between  Great  Britain  and  the 
United  States,  is  to  be  deduced  from  priority  of  the  discovery,  the  above  exposition 
of  dates  and  facts  suffices  to  establish  that  claim  in  favor  of  Great  Britain,  on  a  basis 
too  firm  to  be  shaken.  It  must  indeed  be  admitted,"  continue  the  British  plenipo- 
tentiaries, "  that  Mr.  Gray,  finding  himself  in  the  bay  formed  by  the  discharge  of 
the  waters  of  the  Columbia  into  the  Pacific,  was  the  first  to  ascertain  that  this  hinj 
formed  the  outlet  of  a  great  river — a  discovery  which  had  escaped  Lieutenant  Meares, 
tchen,  in  1788,  four  years  before^  he  entered  the  same  bay."  The  truth  in  the  last  of 
these  assertions  atones  for  the  errors  in  those  which  precede,  and  counteracts  the 
impression  which  the  whole  was  intended  to  produce.  —  See  the  statement  presented 
by  Messrs.  Huskisson  and  Addington  to  Mr.  Gallatin,  in  1826,  among  the  Proofs 
and  Illustrations,  tn  the  latter  part  of  this  volume,  under  the  letter  G. 

t  See  Proofs  and  Illustrations,  in  the  latter  part  of  this  volume,  under  the  letter  C. 

\  Ingraham  subsequently  entered  the  navy  of  the  United  States  as  a  lieutenant, 
and  was  one  of  the  officers  of  the  ill-fated  brig  Pickering,  of  which  nothing  was  ever 
heard,  after  her  departure  from  the  Delaware  in  August,  1800.  Gray  continued  to 
command  trading  vessels  from  Boston  until  1809,  about  which  time  he  died. 


238 


aVByST   OF    ADMIRALTT   INLET. 


[1792. 


•'■'1 


11 T 


'■■  •  1 


.V  In  the  mean  time,  the  surrey  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca  had  been 
completed. 

Vancouver  and  Broughton  took  their  departure  on  the  1st  of 
May,  as  already  mentioned,  from  Cape  Flattery,  the  point  at  the 
south  side  of  the  entrance  of  the  Strait,  and  thence  sailed  slowly 
along  the  coast  eastward,  about  a  hundred  miles,  to  its  extremity 
in  that  direction,  where  they  entered  a  harbor  called  by  them  Port 
Discovery,  the  same  which  had,  in  1790,  received  from  Quimper 
the  name  of  Port  Quadra.  A  little  beyond  this  harbor,  they  found 
another  opening  in  the  coast  towards  the  south,  corresponding  with 
that  called  by  duimper  Canal  de  Caanano,  through  which  they 
entered  an  extensive  arm  of  the  sea,  with  several  branches,  stretch- 
ing in  various  southerly  directions,  to  the  distance  of  more  than  a 
hundred  miles  from  the  strait.  This  great  arm,  called  Admiralty 
Inlet,  with  its  principal  branches.  Hood's  Canal  on  the  west.  Pos- 
session Sound  on  the  east,  and  Puget's  Sound,  the  southernmost, 
were  carefully  surveyed  to  their  respective  terminations ;  and  the 
navigators,  having  thus  ascertained  that  no  passage  through  the  con- 
tinent was  to  be  effected  by  those  channels,  returned  to  the  strait. 
Of  the  beauty  and  apparent  fertility  of  the  country  surrounding  this 
arm  of  the  sea,  Vancouve-  speaks  in  glowing  terms.  The  surface 
near  the  shores  was  generally  undulating,  presenting  a  succession 
of  meadows,  lawns,  and  hillocks,  many  of  which  were  covered 
with  noble  forests  of  oak  ;  ''  the  soil  principally  consisted  of  a  rich, 
black,  vegetable  mould,  lying  on  a  sandy  or  clayey  substratum ;  the 
grass,  of  excellent  quality,  grew  to  the  height  of  three  feet,  and  the 
ferns,  which,  in  the  sandy  soils,  occupied  the  clear  spots,  were 
nearly  twice  as  high."  In  the  distance,  on  the  east,  the  south,  and 
the  west,  the  view  was  bounded  by  lofty  mountain ;,  to  the  stupen- 
dous peaks  of  which  Vancouver  assigned  the  names  of  British 
admirals  and  diplomatists. 

After  completing  this  part  of  their  survey,  the  English  landed  on 
the  shore  of  Possession  Sound,  and  celebrated  the  birthday  of  their 
sovereign,  the  4th  of  June,  by  talcing  possession,  in  his  name,  and 
"  with  the  usual  formalities,  of  all  thai,  part  of  New  Albion,  from 
the  latitude  of  39  degrees  20  minutes  south,  and  longitude  336 
degrees  26  minutes  east,  to  the  entrance  of  the  inlet  of  the  sea, 
said  to  be  the  supposed  Strait  of  Juan  de  Fuca,  as  also  of  all  the 
coasts,  islands,  &,c.,  within  the  said  strait,  and  both  its  shores; "  to 
which  region  they  gave  the  appellation  of  New  Georgia.  With 
regard  to  this  ceremony,  it  may  be  observed,  that,  although  naval 


[1792. 
had  been 

[le  Ist  of 
int  at  the 
ed  slowly 
extremity 
them  Port 
I  Q,uimper 
they  found 
nding  with 
vhich  they 
es,  stretch- 
[lore  than  a 
Admiralty 
west,  Pos- 
iithernmost, 
s;  and  the 
igh  the  con- 
to  the  strait, 
funding  this 
The  surface 
I  succession 
ere   covered 
d  of  a  rich, 
tratum;  the 
eet,  and  the 
spots,  were 
south,  and 
the  stupen- 
of  British 

1  landed  on 
iday  of  their 
name,  and 
\lbion,  from 
igitude  336 
of  the  sea, 
io  of  all  the 
shores;"  to 
'gia.    With 
lOUgh  naval 


1792.] 


TANCOUVER  MEETS  QALIINO  AND  VALDES. 


239 


I 


officers  are  not  expected  to  be  minutely  acquainted  with  diploidatic 
affairs,  yet  Captain  Vancouver,  who  was  sent  to  the  North  Pacific 
as  commissioner  to  execute  the  convention  of  October,  1790,  should 
have  recollected  that,  by  the  stipulations  of  that  convention,  every 
•part  of  the  north-west  coast  of  America  was  rendered  free  and  open 
for  trade  or  settlement  to  Spanish  as  well  as  British  subject;  and 
that,  consequently,  no  claim  of  sovereignty,  ov  ue  part  of  either  of 
those  nations,  could  he  valid.  It  may  seem  pedantic,  if  not  unjust, 
to  make  this  remark  with  regard  to  what  may  have  been  nothing 
more  than  the  result  of  an  exuberance  of  loyal  feeling  in  the  officers 
and  crews  of  the  vessels ;  but  this  talcing  possession  by  Vancouver 
has  been  sin-'e  gravely  adduced,  by  the  representatives  of  the  British 
government,  iv  support  of  its  claims  to  the  dominion  of  the  terri- 
tories above  mentioned.* 

On  returning  to  the  Strai*  of  Fuca,  the  English  examined  several 
other  passages  opening  into  it,  some  of  which  were  found  to  ter- 
minate in  the  land,  at  short  distances  from  their  mouths,  and  others 
to  be  channels  between  islands.  Through  one  of  these  latter  chan- 
nels, opening  immediately  opposite  the  entrance  of  Admiralty  Inlet, 
they  passed  into  a  long  and  wide  gulf,  extending  north-westward ; 
and,  after  proceeding  a  few  miles  within  it,  they,  on  the  23d  of  June, 
unexpectedly  met  the  Spanish  schooners  Sutil  and  Mexicana,f  com- 
manded by  Lieutenants  Galiano  and  Valdes,  which  had  left  Nootka 
on  the  4th  of  the  month,  and  had  advanced  thus  far  along  the 
northern  shore  of  the  strait.  The  meeting  was,  doubtless,  vexatious 
to  the  commanders  of  both  the  parties,  each  being  naturally  anxious 
to  secure  to  himself  all  the  merit  which  might  be  acquired  by  deter- 
mining the  character  of  this  famous  arm  of  the  sea :  they,  however, 
received  and  treated  each  other  with  the  utmost  civility,  mutually 
exhibiting  their  charts  and  journals,  and  comparing  their  obser- 
vations ;  and>  having  agreed  to  unite  their  labors,  they  remained  to- 
gether three  weeks.  During  this  time,  they  surveyed  the  shores  of 
the  great  gulf  above  mentioned,  called  by  the  Spaniards  Canal  del 
Rosario,  and  by  the  English  the  Gulf  of  Georgia,  which  extended 

*  See  statement  of  the  British  commissionera,  among  the  Proofs  and  Illustratioiu, 
in  tlie  latter  part  of  this  volume,  under  the  letter  G. 

t  Vancouver  describes  these  vessels  as  "  each  about  forty-five  tons  burden,  mount- 
ingtwo  brass  guns,  and  navigated  by  twenty-four  men ;  bearing  one  lieutenant,  with- 
out a  single  inferior  officer.  Their  apartments  just  allowed  room  for  sleeping-places 
on  each  side,  with  a  table  in  the  intermediate  space,  at  which  four  persons  could  with 
difficulty  sit ;  and  they  were,  in  all  other  respects,  the  most  ill-calculated  and  unfit 
vessels  that  could  possibly  be  imagined  for  such  an  expedition." 


240 


PASHiGB   THEOVQH   THI>  STRAIT   OF    PUCA. 


[1792. 


ill  •' 


north-wMtward  an  far  as  the  50th  degree  of  latitude ;  and  then,  on 
the  13th  of  July,  the  English  took  leave  of  their  Spanish  friends, 
who,  from  want  of  force,  were  unable  to  keep  up  with  them. 

On  parting  with  tho  Spaniards,  the  English  entered  a  passage, 
named  by  them  Johrutone^s  Strait,  leading  from  the  north-west  ex- 
tremity of  the  gulf;  and  after  a  long  and  difficult  navigation  through 
it,  they,  on  the  !Oth  of  August,  emerged  into  the  i'acific  at  Queen 
Charlotte's  Sound,  about  one  hundred  miles  north  of  Nootka. 
Having  b«jen,  from  the  commencement,  persuaded  that  the  land  on 
the  western  side  of  the  strait  was  an  island,  they  had  devoted  their 
attention  particularly  to  the  eastern  shores^  through  which  a  passage 
might  be  found  to  Hudson's  Bay  or  the  Arctic  Sea ;  but  their  search 
proved  vain,  and,  after  tracing  to  their  terminationu  in  the  interior  a 
number  of  long  and  intricate  inlets,  they  became  convinced  that 
the  continent  extended  uninterruptedly  northward,  at  least  to  the 
51st  parallel  of  latitude.  Immediately  on  entering  the  Pacific,  the 
Discovery  struck  on  a  rock,  and  scarcely  had  she  been  got  off  ere 
a  similar  misfortune  befell  the  Chatham;  both  vessels,  however, 
escaped  wiih  little  injury,  and  they  soon  after  arrived  at  Nootka 
Sound.  Galiano  and  Valdcs  also  passed  through  the  strait  by  the 
same  route,  and  reached  Nootka  in  safety  on  the  4th  of  SepVmber, 

After  the  arrival  of  the  Sutil  and  Mexicana  at  Nootka,  Vancouver 
and  the  Spanish  commander,  Quadra,  compared  together  the  notes 
and  charts  of  the  -two  voyages  through  the  Strait  of  Fuca ;  and  it 
was  'greed  between  them,  that  the  great  island  which  that  arm  of 
the  soa  separated  from  the  American  continent  should  bear  the 
names  of  them  both.  It  has,  in  consequence,  ever  since  been  dis- 
tinguished on  maps  by  the  long  and  inconvenient  appellation  of 
Island  of  Quadra  and  Vancouver,  which  it  will  scarcely  be  allowed 
to  retain,  when  that  part  of  the  world  shall  be  occupied  by  a  civil- 
ized people. 

This  survey  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca  was  conducted  in  the  most 
complete  and  efFcctual  manner  possible  by  Vancouver,  whose  ac- 
count of  it,  filling  a  large  portion  of  his  journal,  together  with  his 
charts,  afford  unequivocal  testimony  of  the  skill  and  perseverance  of 
the  British  navigators.  Galiano  and  Valdes  seem  also  to  have  done 
as  much  as  could  have  been  expected,  considering  the  smallness 
of  their  force  and  the  miserable  scale  of  their  equipments.  Had 
Ihey  not  met  the  British  ships,  they  would,  doubtless,  have  found 
their  way  through  the  strait ;  but  they  could  never  have  made  even 
a  tolerable  survey  of  it,  as  they  must  have  left  a  number  of  passages 


1  >  i] 


1792.) 


NCQOTIATIONS    AT    NOOTKA. 


\  then,  on 
ih  friends, 

a  passage, 
li-west  ex- 
on  through 
c  at  Queen 
af  Nootka. 
the  land  on 
[>voted  their 
;h  a  passage 
their  search 
ho  interior  a 
ivinced  that 
least  to  the 
I  Pacific,  the 
1  got  off  ere 
ils,  however, 
d  at  Nootka 
strait  by  the 
>f  Sep'/^^^mber. 
;a,  Vancouver 
ther  the  notes 
Fuca;  and  it 
h  that  arm  of 
»uld  bear  the 
Ince  been  dis- 
ippellation  of 
fly  be  allowed 
ed  by  a  civil- 


untixplored ;  and  the  world  would,  probably,  never  have  received 
any  detailed  report  of  their  operations.* 

Before  the  arrival  of  these  vessels  at  Nootka  Sound,  Captain 
Caamano  returned  from  his  search  for  the  Rio  de  Reyti  of  Ad- 
miral Font^,  in  which  he  had  spent  two  months.  During  this 
period,  he  entered  many  of  the  openings  in  the  coasts  north  and 
north-eaNt  of  Queen  Charlotte's  Island,  between  the  53d  and  the 
56th  parallels  of  latitude;  some  of  which  were  found  to  be  the 
mouths  of  bays,  or  of  inlets  running  far  inland,  and  others  to  be 
channels  separating  islands.  He  appears  to  have  displayed  much 
skill  and  industry  in  his  examinations,  as  Vancouver  indirectly 
testifies  in  his  narrative :  but  he  effected  no  discoveries  calculated 
to  throw  much  light  on  the  geography  of  that  part  of  the  coast ; 
and  his  labors  were  productive  of  advantage  only  in  so  far  as  they 
served  to  facilitate  the  movements  of  the  English  navigator,  to 
whom  his  charts  and  journals  were  exhibited  at  Nootka. 

At  Nootka,  Vancouver  found  the  store-ship  Deedalus,  which 
A  brought  the  instructions  from  the  British  government  for  his  con- 
duct as  commissioner.  She  left  England  in  the  autumn  of  1791, 
under  the  command  of  Lieutenant  Hergest ;  and,  passing  around 
Cape  Horn,  she,  in  the  latter  part  of  March,  1792,  fell  in  with  the 

"  The  voyage  of  the  Sutil  and  Mexicana  was  the  last  made  by  the  Spaniards  in 
the  North  Pacific  Ocean,  for  the  purposes  of  disco  ','ery ;  and  the  only  one,  since  that 
of  Vizcaino,  of  which  an  authentic  account  has  been  given  to  the  world,  with  the 
Banction  of  the  Spanish  government.  The  Journal  of  Galiano  and  Valdes  was  pub- 
lished  at  Madrid  in  1S02,  by  order  of  the  king,  with  an  Introduction,  often  cited  in 
the  preceding  pages,  including  a  historical  sketch  of  the  exploring  voyages  of  the 
Spaniards  on  the  coasts  of  America,  north-west  of  Mexico.  This  Introduction  is  the 
only  valuable  part  of  the  work  ;  the  meagre  and  uninteresting  details  of  the  Journal 
having  been  superseded  by  the  full  and  luminous  descriptions  of  Vancouver:  it 
wag  intended  —  as  a  defence  of  the  rights  of  Spain  to  the  north* west  portion  of 
America,  which  were  supposed  to  be  endangered  since  the  cession  of  Louisiana  to 
France  —  as  a  vindication  of  the  claims  of  Spanish  navigators  to  the  merit  of  dis- 
covering  those  regions,  which  the  British  were  endeavoring  to  monopolize  —  a  >;I  m  a 
reply  to  the  charges,  insinuations,  and  sarcasms,  against  the  intelligence,  liberal  t;,, 
and  good  faith,  of  the  Spanish  government  and  nation,  brought  forward  by  Fieur.<'a. 
It  was  compiled  chiefly  from  the  original  journals  and  other  document«.  'ft  I'le 
archives  of  the  Council  of  the  Indies,  relative  to  the  exploration  of  the  North  Pacific 
coasts ;  and,  in  this  manner,  many  curious  if  not  important  facts  were  communi- 
cated, which  might  otherwise  have  remained  forever  buried.  It  is,  however,  to  be 
regretted  that  the  author  should  have  disfigured  his  work  —  as  he  has  in  every  part  in 
which  the  honor  or  interests  of  Spain  are  concerned  —  by  gross  and  palpable  misstate- 
ments of  circumstances,  respecting  which  he  undoubtedly  possessed  the  means  of 
arriving  at  the  truth.  It  may,  perhaps,  be  considered  a  sufficient  apology  for  him, 
that  his  book  was  published  by  the  Spanish  government,  at  Madrid,  in  1802,  as  we 
know  not  what  changes  may  have  been  made  in  it  by  insertions,  suppressions,  and 
alterations,  after  it  lefl  his  hands. 

31 


Sr  '■    ^    ffll 


Mm 


m 


r 


\  ; 


842 


LRTTER  or  GRAY  AKD  INGRAHAM. 


[119-2. 


|l'  ■• 


iilandi  in  the  centra  of  the  Pacific,  north  of  the  Man«JJ.>a^  which 
had  been  discovered  by  Ingraham  in  April  of  the  preceding  ymt. 
Sailing  thence,  she  reached  Woahoo,  one  of  the  Sandwich  Islands, 
where  Lieutenant  Hergcst  and  Mr.  Gooch,  the  astronomer,  were 
murdered  by  the  natives,  on  the  11th  of  May;  after  which  she 
came  to  Nootka  Sound,  under  the  command  of  Lieutenant  New. 
Vancouver  gave  the  name  of  HtrgesCt  Islands  to  the  group  visited 
by  the  Dcedalus,  as  above  mentioned ;  and  so  they  are  called  in  his 
chart,  although,  as  he  says  in  his  journal,  he  had  been  informed 
ttuit  they  had  been  previously  discovered  and  landed  on  by  some  of  the 
American  traders. 

For  his  conduct  as  commissioner,  Vancouver  was  referred  by  his 
instructions  to  the  convention  of  Octobei,  1790,  and  to  a  letter 
brought  by  the  Dsedalus  from  count  de  Florida  Blanca,  the  Spanish 
minister  of  state,  addressed  to  the  commandant  of  the  port  of  San 
Lorenzo  of  Nootka,  ordering  that  officer,  in  conformity  with  the 
first  article  of  the  convention,  to  put  his  Britannic  majesty's  com- 
missioner !n  possession  of  the  buildings  and  districts,  or  parcels  of 
land,  which  were  occupied  by  his  subjects  in  April,  1789,  as  well 
in  the  port  o^  Nootka  as  in  the  other,  said  to  be  called  Fort  Cox, 
and  to  be  situated  about  sixteen  leagues  farther  sout 'iward.  A  copy 
of  this  ordf  r  had  been  given  to  Quadra,  on  hif  departure  from 
Mexico ;  but  it  does  not  appear  that  either  of  the  commissioners 
was  furnished  by  his  government  with  any  evidence  to  assist  him  in 
ascertaining  precisely  what  lands  were  to  be  restored,  or  for  what 
buildings  indemnification  was  to  be  made  by  the  Spaniards. 

In  order  to  supply  this  want  of  information.  Quadra  had,  imme- 
diately on  arriving  at  Nootka,  made  inquiries  on  the  subject  of 
Maquinna  and  other  chiefs  of  the  surrounding  tribes ;  all  of  whom, 
without  hesitation,  denied  that  any  lands  had  been  purchased,  or 
any  houses  had  been  built  there,  by  the  English  at  any  time.  As 
the  testimony  of  the  savage  chiefs  could  not,  however,  be  of  much 
value  alone,  he  had  next  addressed  his  inquiries  to  Captains  Gray 
and  Ingraham,  who  arrived  at  Nootka  in  July,  as  already  stated, 
and  who  had  witnessed  the  proceedings  at  that  place  in  1789,  when 
the  former  commanded  the  Washington,  and  the  latter  was  first 
mate  of  the  Columbia ;  and  they,  in  answer,  sent  a  letter,  dated 
August  2d,  containing  a  clear  and  particular  statement  of  all  the 
circumstances  connected  with  the  occupation  of  Nootka,  and  the 
seizure  of  the  vessels  by  Martinez.  With  regard  to  the  particular 
points  in  question,  they  declare  unequivocally  that,  although  they 


\ 


1792.] 


PRuroiiTioNt  or  ^uaoha. 


S43 


had  beon  in  habits  of  constant  intvrcourse  with  Maquinna  and  his 
people  for  nino  months,  they  had  never  heard  of  any  purchase  of 
lands  on  that  coast  by  British  subjects ;  and  that  the  only  building 
Bccn  by  them,  when  they  reached  the  sound  in  September,  1789, 
was  a  rude  hut,  made  by  the  Indians,  which  had  been  destroyed 
long  before  the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards.*  These  statements  wore, 
in  all  respects,  confirmed  by  Viana,  the  Portuguese,  who  had  been 
the  captain  of  the  Iphigonia  in  1783  and  1789,  and  who  was  then 
with  his  vessel  at  Nootka ;  and  the  Spanish  commissioner  thereupon 
considered  himself  authorized  to  assume  that  no  landt  toere  to  he 
ratored,  and  no  buildings  to  be  replaced  or  paid  for  by  Spain. 

A  communication  to  this  eflect,  with  copies  of  the  letters  of  Gray 
and  Ingraham  and  Viana,  was,  accordingly,  addressed  by  Quadra 
to  Vancouver,  on  the  arrival  of  the  latter  at  Nootka.  The  Spanish 
commissioner,  however,  at  the  same  time  offered,  with  the  view  of 
removing  all  causes  of  disagreement  between  the  two  nations,  to 
surrender  to  the  British  the  small  spot  of  ground  on  the  shore  of 
Friendly  Cove,  which  had  been  temporarily  occupied  by  Mcarcs  and 
his  people  in  1788;  to  give  up,  Tor  their  use,  the  houses  and  cul- 
tivated lands  of  the  Spaniards  near  that  place ;  and  to  retire  with 
all  his  forces  to  Port  Nunez  Gaona,  in  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  (where 
an  establishment  had  been  begun  by  Fidalgo,)  until  the  two  govern- 
ments should  determine  further  on  the  matter:  with  the  under- 
standing, nevertheless,  that  this  cession  was  not  to  be  considered  as 
afiecting  the  rights  of  his  Catholic  majesty  to  the  dominion  of  the 
territory,  and  that  Nootka  was  to  be  regarded  as  the  most  northern 
settlement  of  the  Spaniards,  to  whom  the  whole  coast  lying  south 
of  it,  and  the  adjacent  country,  was  to  be  acknowledged  to  belong 
exclusively.  '\ 

Vancouver,  on  the  other  hand,  had  thought  proper  to  construe 
the  first  article  of  the  convention  of  1790  as  giving  to  his  country- 
men possession  of  the  whole  territory  surrounding  Nootka  and  Clyo- 
quot;  and  he  therefore  refused  to  receive  what  was  offered  by 
Quadra,  declaring,  with  regard  to  the  concluding  part  of  the 
Spaniard's  proposition,  that  he  was  not  authorized  to  enter  into  any 
discussion  as  to  the  rights  or  claims  of  the  respective  nations.  In 
this  conviction  he  wns  supported  by  the  evidence  of  Robert  Duffin, 
the  former  mate  of  the  Argonaut,  who  happened  to  arrive  at  Nootka 
while  the  negotiation  was  in  progress.     This  person  testified  that 


fi  C '' 


*  See  letter  of  Gray  and  Ingraham  to  Quadra,  among  the  Proofs  and  Illustrations, 
in  the  latter  part  of  this  volume,  under  the  letter  D. 


#   -t  ! 


i 


li;    1 

I;  ;l 


:'!'• 


I  liii 


244 


DUrriN  S    EVIDENCE,    f  ' 


[1792. 


he  had  accompanied  Mr.  Meares  to  Nootka  in  1788,  with  his  two 
vessels,  which  sailed  under  Portuguese  colors  and  under  the  name 
of  a  Portuguese  merchant,  for  the  purpose  of  avoiding  certain 
heavy  duties  at  Macao,  but  were,  notwithstanding,  "  entirely  British 
"property,  and  wholly  navigated  hy  the  subjects  of  his  Britannic 
majesty;"  that  he  had  himself  been  present  when  Mr.  Meares 
T>urchased  "  from  the  two  chiefs,  Maquinna  and  Callicum,  the  whole 
of  the  land  that  forms  Friendly  Cove,  Nootka  Sound,  in  his  Bri- 
tannic majesty's  name,"  for  some  sheets  of  copper  and  trifling 
articles;  that  the  natives  were  perfectly  satisjfied,  and,  with  the 
chiefs,  did  homage  to  Mr.  Meares  as  sovereign ;  that  the  British  flag 
—  not  the  Portuguese  —  was  displayed  on  shore  on  that  occasion ; 
that  Mr.  Meares  caused  a  house  to  be  erected  on  a  convenient  spot, 
containing  thrto  bed-chambers,  with  a  mess-room  for  the  officers 
and  proper  apartments  for  the  men,  "  surrounded  by  several  out- 
houses and  sheds  for  the  artificers  to  work  in,  all  of  which  he  left 
in  good  repair,  under  the  care  of  Maquinna  and  Callicum,  until  he, 
or  some  of  his  associates,  should  return  ;  that  he,  Duffin,  was  not 
at  Nootka  when  Martinez  arrived  there,  but  he  understood  no  vestige 
of  the  house  remained  at  that  time ;  and,  on  his  return  thither  in 
July,  1789,  he  found  the  Cove  occupied  by  the  subjects  of  his 
Catholic  majesty,  and  on  the  spot  on  which  the  house  had  stood 
were  the  tents  and  houses  of  some  of  the  people  of  the  ship 
Columbia.  Upon  the  streigth  of  this  testimony,  Vancouver  pro- 
nounced the  declarations  of  Messrs.  Gray  and  Ingraham  to  be  en- 
tirely false ;  and  he  takes  pains,  in  several  parts  of  his  work,  to 
animadvert,  in  severe  terms,  on  what  he  is  pleased  to  call  "  the 
wilfu)  misrepresentations  of  the  Americans,  to  the  prejudice  of 
British  subjects." 

On  the  points  to  which  Duffin's  statement  relates,  it  is  unne**  • 
sary  to  add  any  thing  to  what  has  been  already  said.  The  eviden,  k 
is  presented  to  us  by  Vancouver,  in  the  form  of  an  abstract,  of  the 
correctness  of  which,  as  well  as  of  the  candor  of  that  officer,  we 
may  be  enabled  to  form  an  estimate,  by  comparing  his  abstract  of 
the  letter  from  Gray  and  Ingraham  to  Quadra,  with  the  letter  itself. 
It  will  be  thus  seen,  that  the  British  commander  has,  most  unfairly, 
garbled  the  testimony  of  the  American  traders,  by  suppressing  or 
altering  every  part  of  it  which  could  tend  to  place  his  countrymen, 
or  their  cause,  in  an  unfavorable  light,  or  to  excuse  the  conduct  of 
the  Spaniards  towards  them.  His  bitterness  towards  the  citizens 
of  the  United  States,  on  this  occasion,  may,  perhaps,  be  attributed 


II  H. 


[1792. 

th  his  two 
the  name 
ig  certain 
>ly  British 
Britannic 
[r.  Meares 
,  the  whole 
in  his  Bri- 
md  trifling 
I,  with  the 
British  flag 
it  occasion ; 
enient  spot, 
the  officers 
several  out- 
vhich  he  left 
um,  until  he, 
ffin,  was  not 
}od  no  vestign 
im  thither  in 
ibjects  of  his 
se  had  stood 
of  the  ship 
incouver  pro- 
lam  to  be  en- 
his  work,  to 
to  call  "the 
prejudice  of 


1792.] 


NEGOTIATION    SUSPENDED. 


245 


to  the  circumstance,  that,  on  his  arrival  at  Nootka,  he  learned  the 
complete  success  of  Gray  in  finding  a  large  river,  and  a  secure 
harbor,  on  a  coast  which  he  had  himself  explored  in  vain  with  the 
same  objects. 

The  correspondence  between  the  two  commissioners  was  con- 
tinued for  some  weeks,  at  the  end  of  which,  finding  it  impossible 
to  effect  any  definitive  arrangement,  they  agreed  to  submit  the 
matter,  with  all  the  additional  evi  Jence  obtained  by  both  parties,  to 
their  respective  governments,  and  to  await  further  orders ;  Nootka 
being,  in  the  mean  time,  considered  a  Spanish  port.*    Vancouver, 

*  The  preceding  sketch  of  the  negotiation  between  Vancouver  and  Quadra  is 
derived  from  the  Journals  of  Vancouver,  Galiano  and  Valdes,  and  Ingraham.  The 
following  summary  account  of  the  business,  extracted  from  Ingraham's  Journal,  r;aa 
drawn  up,  at  his  request,  by  Mr.  Howel,  the  supercargo  of  the  American  brig  Mar- 
garet, who  acted  as  translator  for  Quadra,  and  saw  the  whole  of  the  correspondence. 

"The  indefinite  mode  of  expression  adopted  by  Messrs.  Fitzherbert  and  Florida 
Blanca  did  not  affix  any  boundaries  to  the  cession  expected  by  Great  Britain :  what 
the  buildings  were,  or  what  was  the  extent  of  the  tract  of  land  to  be  restored,  the 
plenipotentiaries  did  not  think  proper  to  determine.    Don  Juan  Francisco,  having 
no  better  guide,  collected  the  best  evidence  he  could  procure,  and  that  could  enable 
him  to  determine  what  were  the  lands  and  buildings  of  which  the  British  subjects 
were  dispossessed,  and  which  the  tenor  of  the  first  article  of  the  convention  alone 
authorized  him  to  restore.    The  result  of  tliis  investigation,  in  which  he  was  much 
aided  by  your  communication,  supported  by  the  uniform  declarations  of  Maquinna 
and  his  tribe,  sufficiently  evinced  that  the  tract  was  a  small  corner  of  Friendly  Cove, 
and,  to  use  the  words  of  Captain  Vancouver,  little  more  than  a  hundred  yards  in  ex- 
tent any  way ;  and  the  buildings,  according  to  your  information,  dwindled  to  one 
hut.    Seiior  Quadra,  having  ascertained  the  limits  usually  occupied  by  Mr.  Meares, 
or  his  servants,  was  ever  ready  to  deliver  it,  in  behalf  of  his  Catholic  majesty,  to  any 
envoy  from  the  British  court.    Captain  Vancouver  arrived  at  Nootka  Sound  in  the 
latter  end  of  August ;  and  Seiicr  Quadra  wrote  to  him  on  the  subject  of  their  re- 
spective orders,  and  enclosed  your  letter,  together  with  one  from  a  Captain  Viana,  a 
Portuguese,  who  passed  as  captain  of  the  Iphigenia,  when  she  was  detained  by  the 
Spaniards.    Don  Juan  Francisco,  in  his  letter,  avowed  his  readiness  to  put  Captain 
Vancouver  in  possession  of  the  tract  of  land  where  Mr.  Meares's  house  once  stood, 
which  alone  could  be  that  ceded  to  Great  Britain  by  the  convention.     Seiior  Quadra 
offered,  likewise,  to  leave  for  his  accommodation  all  the  houses,  gardens,  «Stc.,  which 
had  been  made  at  the  expense  of  his  Catholic  majesty,  as  he  intended  leaving  the 
port  immediately.    In  the  same  letter,  he  tendered  Captain  Vancouver  offijrs  of 
every  service  and  assistance  which  liospitality  or  benevolence  could  dictate.     Cap- 
tain Vancouver,  in  reply,  gratefully  acknowledged  the  intended  favors,  but  entiiely 
dissented  from  the  boundaries  affixed  by  Seiior  Quadra  to  the  tract  of  land,  of  which 
he  was  to  receive  the  possession  and  property ;  and,  in  pursuance  of  his  directions, 
interpreted  the  first  article  as  a  cession  of  this  port,  viz.,  JVoolka  Sound,  in  toto,  to- 
gether icilh  Clyoquot,  or  Port  Cox.    He  uisclaimed  all  retrospective  discussion  of  the 
rights,  pretensions,  &c.,  of  the  two  courts,  and  also  of  the  actual  possessions  of  British 
subjects  in  Nootka  Sound,  deeming  it  irrelevant  to  the  business  ho  was  authorized 
to  transact,  and  only  to  be  settled  by  the  respective  monarchs.     The  l:>lters  wliii^h 
followe'l  on  both  sides  were  merely  a  reiteration  of  the  fcregomg  proposals  and 
demands.    Seiior  Quadra  invited  to  a  discussion  of  the  boundaries,  &c.,  and  sup- 


:i  Mii: 


246 


suBVET  or  bulfinch's  harbob. 


[1792. 


iS^ 


Bccordingly,  despatched  Lieutenant  Mudge,  by  way  of  China,  to 
England,  with  communications  for  his  government ;  and  he  then 
prepared  for  his  own  departure  towards  the  south,  being  resolved  to 
examine  the  Columbia  River  and  Bulfinch's  Harbor,  of  which  he 
had  received  from  Quadra  copies  of  the  charts  given  to  that  officer 
by  Gray. 

Vancouver  sailed  from  Nootka,  with  his  three  vessels,  on  the  13th 
of  October,  and,  on  the  18th,  he  was  opposite  Bulfinch's  Harbor, 
to  examine  which  he  detached  Lieutenant  Whidbey,  in  the  Daeda- 
lus, while  he  himself  proceded  with  the  other  vessels  to  the  mouth 
of  the  Columbia.  Into  that  river  Broughton  penetrated,  in  tlie 
Chatham,  on  the  20th :  the  Discovery  was  unable  to  pass  the  bar 
at  the  mouth ;  and  Vancouver,  being  persuaded  that  the  stream  was 
inaccepjible  to  large  ships,  "except  in  very  fine  weather,  with 
modemte  winds,  and  a  smooth  sea,"  sailed  to  the  Bay  of  San 
Francisco,  where  he  had  ordered  the  other  officers  to  join  him  in 
case  of  separation.  In  December  following,  the  whole  squadron 
was  reunited  at  Monterey,  where  Whidbey  and  Broughton  pre- 
sented the  reports  of  their  observations. 

Whidbey's  account  of  Bulfinch's  Harbor  was  less  favorable  than 
Gray's;  from  both,  however,  it  appears  that  the  place  possesses 
advantages  which  must  render  it  important,  whenever  the  surround- 
ing region  becomes  settled.  It  affords  a  safe  retreat  for  small 
vessels,  and  there  are  several  spots  on  its  shore  where  boats  may 
land  without  difficulty :  moreover,  it  is  the  only  harbor  on  the  coast, 
between  Cape  Mendocino  and  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  except  the  moutli 
of  the  Columbia ;  and,  under  such  circumstances,  labor  and  inge- 
nuity will  certainly  be  employed  to  correct  and  improve  what  nature 
has  offered.  Upon  the  strength  of  this  survey,  the  place  has  been 
frequently  distinguished  on  British,  and  even  on  American  maps, 
as  Whidbey's  Harbor,  although  Vancouver  himself  has  not  pre- 
tended to  withhold  from  Gray  the  merit  of  discovering  it. 

Broughton,  as  before  mentioned,  entered  the  Columbia  with  the 

ported  his  evidence  with  well-grounded  reasoning ;  yet  Captain  Vancouver  steadily 
adhered  to  the  demands  he  first  made,  and  refused  every  kind  of  discussion.  The 
definitive  letter  from  Senor  Quadra  was  transmitted  on  the  15th  of  September;  but, 
it  being  of  the  same  nature  with  the  preceding  ones,  Captain  Vancouver  only  re- 
plied by  a  repetition  of  his  former  avowal,  and  informing  the  Spanish  commandant 
that  he  could  receive,  on  the  part  of  his  master,  the  king  of  Britain,  no  other  terri- 
tories than  those  he  had  pointed  out  in  his  other  letters,  with  which  if  Serior  Quadra 
did  not  comply,  he  must  retain  them  for  his  Catholic  majesty,  until  the  respective 
courts  should  determine  what  further  proceedings  they  might  deem  necessary." 


1792.] 


BROUGHTON    SUKVEYS    THE    COLUMBIA   RIVER. 


247 


on  the  13th 
h's  Harbor, 
the  Daeda- 
»  the  mouth 
ated,  in  the 
jass  the  bar 
e  stream  was 
reather,  with 
Bay  of  San 
join  him  in 
ole  squadron 
oughton  pre- 

avorable  than 
lace  possesses 
I  the  surround- 
reat  for  small 
•re  boats  may 
•  on  the  coast, 
ept  the  mouth 
hor  and  inge- 
re  what  nature 
[ace  has  been 
erican  maps, 
has  not  pre- 
ring  it. 
imbia  with  the 


Qhatham,  on  the  20th  of  October ;  and  he  there,  to  his  surprise, 
found  lying  at  anchor  the  brig  Jenny,  from  Bristol,  which  had  sailed 
from  Nootka  Sound  a  few  days  previous.  Scarcely  had  the  Chat- 
ham effected  an  entrance  ere  she  ran  aground ;  and  the  channel 
proved  to  be  so  intricate,  that  Broughton  determined  to  leave  her 
about  four  miles  from  the  mouth,  and  to  proceed  up  the  stream  in 
his  cutter.  A  short  account  of  his  survey  will  be  sufficient,  as  it 
would  be  unnecessary  to  present  an  abridgment  of  the  long  and 
minute  description  given  in  the  journal  of  Vancouver. 

The  portion  of  the  Columbia  near  the  sea  was  found  by  Brough- 
ton to  be  about  seven  miles  in  width ;  its  depth  varied  from  two 
fathoms  to  eight,  and  it  was  crossed  in  every  direction  by  shoals, 
which  must  always  render  the  navigation  difficult,  even  by  small 
vessels.  Higher  up,  the  stream  became  narrower,  and,  at  the 
distance  of  twenty-five  miles  from  its  mouth,  its  breadth  did  not 
exceed  a  thousand  yards.  These  circumstances  were  considered  by 
Broughton  and  Vancouver  as  authorizing  them  to  assume  that  the 
(rue  entrance  of  the  river  tvas  at  the  last-mentioned  point,  and  that 
the  waters  between  it  and  the  ocean  constituted  an  inlet  or  sound.* 
From  the  extremity  of  this  inlet,  the  party  rowed  eighty  miles  up 
the  river,  in  a  south-west  course,  to  a  bend,  where,  the  current 
being  so  rapid  as  to  prevent  them  from  advancing  without  great 
labor,  they  abandoned  the  survey,  and  returned  to  their  vessel. 
The  angle  of  land  around  which  the  river  flowed,  and  where  their 
progress  was  arrested,  received  the  appellation  oi  Poiat  Vancouver; 
the  part  of  the  inlet  where  the  ship  Columbia  Iny  at  aiii  hor  during 
her  visit,  was  called  Gray's  Bay ;  and  that  immediately  within  Cape 
Disappointment  was  named  Baker's  Bay,  in  compliment  to  the 
captain  of  the  Jenny.     On  the  10th  of  November,  the  Chatham 

*  "1  shall  conclude  this  account  of  the  Columbia  River  by  a  few  short  remarks 
that  Mr.  Broughton  made  in  the  course  of  its  survey,  in  his  own  words.  '  The 
discovery  of  this  river,  we  were  given  to  understand,  is  claimed  by  the  Spaniards, 
who  called  it  ErUrada  de  Ceta,  afler  the  commander  of  the  vessel  who  is  said  to  be  its 
first  discoverer,  but  who  never  entered  it;  he  places  it  in  -if,  degrees  north  latitude. 
It  is  tlie  same  opening  that  Mr.  Gray  stated  to  us,  in  the  spring,  he  had  been  nine 
days  off,  the  former  year,  but  could  not  get  in,  in  consequence  of  the  outsetting 
current ;  that,  in  the  course  of  the  late  summer,  he  had,  however,  entered  the  river, 
cr  rather  the  sound,  and  had  named  it  afler  the  ship  he  then  commanded.  The  ex- 
tent Mr.  Gray  became  acquainted  with  on  that  occasion  is  no  farther  than  what  I 
have  called  Gray's  Bay,  not  more  than  fifteen  miles  from  Cape  Disappointment, 
though,  according  to  Mr.  Gray's  sketch,  it  measures  thirty-six  miles.  By  his  calcu- 
lation, its  entrance  lies  in  latitude  46  degrees  10  minutes,  longitude  237  degrees  18 
minutes,  differing  materially,  in  these  respects,  from  our  observations.'  "  —  Vancou- 
ver, vol.  ii.  p.  74. 


i  r 


248 


UNWORTHY    CONDUCT    OF    VANCOUVER. 


[1792. 


quitted  the  Columbia,  in  conrpany  with  the  Jenny,  and  arrived  at 
Port  San  Francisco  before  the  end  of  the  month. 

The  distinction  which  Vancouver  and  Broughton  have  thus  en- 
deavored to  establish  between  the  upper  and  the  lower  portions  of 
the  Columbia,  is  entirely  destitu'e  of  foundation,  and  at  variance 
with  the  principles  of  our  whole  geographical  nomenclature.    Inkts 
and  sounds  are  arms  of  the  sea,  running  up  into  the  land  ;  and  their 
waters,  being  supplied  from  the  sea,  are  necessarily  salt :  the  waters 
of  the  Columbia  are,  on  the  contrary,  generally  fresh  and  potable 
within  ten  miles  of  the  Pacific ;  the  volume  and  the  overbearing 
force  of  the  current  being  sufficient  to  prevent  the  farther  ingress 
of  the  ocean.     The  question  appears,  at  first,  to  be  of  no  conse- 
quence :  the  following  extract  from  Vancouver's  journal  will,  how- 
ever, ser''e  to  show  that  the  quibble  was  devised  by  the  British 
navigators,  with   the  unworthy  object  of  depriving  Gray  of  the 
merits  of  his  discovery :  "  Previously  to  his  [Broughton's]  depart- 
ure, he  formally  took  possession  of  the  river,  and  the  country  in  its 
vicinity,  in  his  Britannic  majesty's  name,  having  every  reason  to 
believe  that  the  subjects  of  no  other  civilized  nation  or  state  had  ever 
entered  this  river  before.     In  this  opinion  he  was  confirmed  by  Mr. 
Gray's  sketch,  in  which  it  does  not  appear  that  Mr.  Gray  either  saw 
ur  ever  ivas  within  five  leagues  of  its  entrance."     This  unjust  view 
has  been  adopted  by  the  British  government  and  writers,  and  also, 
doubtless  from  inadvertency,  by  some  distinguished  authors  in  the 
United  States.     It  may  be,  indeed,  considered  fortunate  for  Gray, 
that,  by  communicating  the  particulars  of  his  discoveries,  as  he  did, 
to  Quadra,  he  secured  an  unimpeachable  witness  in  support  of  his 
claims ;  had  he  not  done  so,  the  world  would  probably  never  have 
learned  that  a  citizen  of  the  United  States  was  the  first  to  enter  the 
greatest  river  flowing  from  America  into  the  Pacific,  and  to  find  the 
only  safe  harbor  on  the  long  line  of  coast  between  Port  San  Fran- 
cisco and  the  Strait  of  Fuca. 

At  San  Francisco  and  Monterey,  Vancouver  surveyed  the  bays, 
and  examined  the  Spanish  establishments,  of  which  he  presents 
minute  ynd  graphic  descriptions  in  his  narrative  ;  and  he  obtained 
satisfactory  evidence  that  the  presidio  of  San  Francisco,  situated 
near  the  entrance  of  the  bay,  in  latitude  of  37  degrees  48  minutes, 
tvas  ihe  northernmost  spot,  on  the  Pacific  coast  of  America,  occupied 
by  the  Spaniards  previous  to  the  month  of  May,  1789,  and  was,  con- 
sequently, according  to  the  convention  of  1790,  the  northernmost 
spot  on  that  coast  over  which  Spain  ^ouid  exercise  exclusive  juris- 


1793.] 


EXECUTION    OF    MURDERERS    AT    WOAHOO. 


U9 


diction.  At  Monterey,  the  English  commander  again  met  and 
confetred  with  the  Spanish  commissioner  Quadra;  and  it  was 
agreed  between  them,  that  Lieutenant  Broughton  should  proceed 
to  Europe,  across  Mexico,  with  further  communications,  for  their 
respective  courts,  on  the  subject  of  the  arrangement  of  the  ques- 
tions at  issue.  These  affairs  having  been  concluded,  the  Daedalus 
was  sent  to  New  South  Wales ;  and  Vancouver  proceeded,  with 
the  Discovery  an  1  Chatham,  the  latter  under  Lieutenpiit  Puget,  to 
tlie  Sandwich  Islands,  where  they  arrived  in  the  middle  of  Feb- 
ruary, 1793. 

At  Owyhee,  the  English  ships  were  visited  by  Tamahamaha, 
who  was,  by  this  time,  acknowledged  as  king  of  the  island 
by  all  the  other  chiefs  except  Tamaahmoto,  the  murderer  of  the 
crew  of  the  Fair  American.  Vancouver  immediately  recognized 
the  authority  of  Tamahamaha,  to  which  he  endeavored,  but  in  vain, 
to  induce  Tamaahmoto  to  submit ;  he  then  sailed  to  Mowee,  where 
he  succeeded  in  negotiating  a  peace  between  Titeree,  king  of  that 
island,  and  the  sovereign  of  Owyhee,  and  thence  to  Woahoo,  where 
he  superintended  the  trial  and  execution  of  three  natives,  who 
had  been  delivered  up  to  him  as  the  murderers  of  Hergest  and 
Gooch,  the  officers  of  the  Daedalus.  The  particulars  of  these 
judicial  proceedings  are  detailed  with  precision  by  Vancouver,  who 
seems  to  have  been  perfectly  content  with  their  regularity  and 
correctness ;  nevertheless,  when  Broughton  visited  the  island,  in 
1796,  he  was  assured,  as  he  says,  "that  the  men  who  were  exe- 
cuted alongside  of  the  Discovery  had  not  committed  the  murders, 
but  were  unfortunate  beings  whom  the  chief  selected  to  satisfy 
Captain  Vancouver."  *  This  appears  to  be  certain  from  subsequent 
accounts;  and  it  seems  to  be  somewhat  strange,  that  Vancouver 
should  not  have  suspected  it  to  have  been  the  case,  at  the  time  of 
the  trial. 

Having  performed  these  acts  of  diplomacy  and  justice  in  the 
Sandwich  Islands,  Vancouver  proceeded  to  the  American  coasts ; 
and,  after  examining  the  portion  near  Cape  Mendocino,  including 
the  place  called  Port  Trinidad  by  the  Spaniards,  in  1775,  so  as  to 
connect  his  siirveys  north  and  south  of  that  portion,  he  sailed  to 
Nootka,  where  he  arrived  on  the  20th  of  May,  1793.  The  remain- 
der of  the  warm  season  was  passed  by  the  British  navigators  in 
makin;    a  minute  and  laborious  examination  of  the  shores  of  the 


'.If;  1-1 -.'ii 


■  ii 


*  Journal  of  a  Voyage  to  the  Pacific,  from  J793  to  1797,  by  Captain  Robert 
Broughton,  p.  42. 

8S 


SSO       PRETENDED   CESSION    OF    OWTHEE    TO   GREAT   BRITAIN.  [1794. 

continent,  and  the  islands  in  its  vicinity,  from  the  northern  ent  ance 
of  the  Strait  of  Faca,  near  the  51st  degree  of  latitude,  northward, 
as  far  as  the  54th  parallel ;  tracing  to  their  terminations,  as  in  the 
preceding  year,  all  the  passages  which  appeared  to  run  eastward,  as 
well  as  many  others,  which  were  found  to  be  channels  separating 
islands  from  each  other  or  from  the  main  land.  Several  open- 
ings stiill  remained  unexplored  beyond  the  54th  parallel ;  but  the 
weather  became  so  stormy  at  the  end  of  September,  that  the 
survey  could  no  longer  be  continued  with  safety  or  advantage: 
Vancouver  accordingly  returned  along  the  western  side  of  Queen 
Charlotte's  Island  to  Nootka,  and  thence  took  his  departure  for 
Port  San  Francisco,  which  he  reached  on  the  19th  of  October. 

From  Port  San  Francisco  the  British  navigators  sailed  along  the 
thoKB  o(  California — which  Vancouver  fakes  care  always  to  call 
Ntio  Albion — as  far  south  as  San  Diego,  near  the  33d  degree  of 
latitude,  visiting  every  important  point  on  their  wivj,  and  observing 
the  coasts  with  great  exactness ;  and  thence,  in  the  middle  of  De- 
cember, they  went  to  Owyhee,  where  they  found  that  the  supremacy 
ef  Tamahamaha  was  admitted,  though  with  some  qualifications,  by 
the  people  and  the  other  chiefs.  Here  Vancouver  succeeded  in 
effetting  a  reconciliation  between  the  king  and  Tahowmannoo, 
his  suHana,  (since  better  known  as  Kaahumanu,)  from  whom  he 
had  been  for  some  time  separated  on  account  of  her  open  and 
repeated  infidelities ;  and  he  soon  after  gave  further  proof  of  his 
talents  as  negotiator,  in  a  transaction  the  particulars  of  which  do 
not  appear  to  have  been  understood  in  the  same  light  by  both 
the  parties. 

The  navijrator  states  that  a  strong  disposition  had  been  manifested 
by  Bevfefal  c'liefs,  at  the  time  of  his  first  visit,  to  place  their  island 
under  subjection  to  the  British  king,  but  that  it  had  been  opposed 
by  other  chiefs,  on  the  ground  that  they  should  not  surrender 
themselves  to  a  superior  foreign  power,  unless  they  were  assured 
that  th<»y  v»  uld  thus  be  really  protected  against  distant  and 
neighboring  enemies.  At  the  *ime  of  his  second  visit,  however, 
he  found  the  disposition  to  submit  much  increased,  and,  as  he  says, 
"Under  a  conviiction  of  the  importance  of  these  islands  to  Great 
j^itain,  in  the  fevdnt  of  an  extension  of  her  commerce  over  the 
Pacific  Ocean,  and  in  return  for  the  essential  services  we  had 
^ieriVed  firom  the  excellent  productions  of  the  country,  and  the 
ready  assistance  of  its  inhabitants,  I  lost  no  opportunity  for  encour- 
a^ng  their  friendly  dispositions  toward   us,   notwithstanding  the 


nd4.]    PRETENDED    CBS9I0N    OF   OWYHBB   TO   GREAT   BRITAIN.      Sfilt 


disappointments  they  had  met  from  the  traders,  for  whose  conduct' 
I  could  invent  no  apology ;  endeavoring  to  impress  them  with  the 
idea  that,  on  submitting  to  the  authority  and  protection  of  a  superior 
power,  they  might  reasonably  expect  they  would'  in  future  be  less 
liable  to  such  abuses."     Acting  under  these  views,  he  conciliated 
Tamahamaha  by  building  for  him  a  small  vessel^  on  which  the- 
guns  taken  from  the  schooner  Fair  American  were  mounted ;  and, 
having  induced  all  the  principal  chiefs  to  m^et  him  on  the  shore 
near  his  ships,  it  was  determined,  at  the  assembly,  that  Owyhee 
should  be   ceded   to  his   Britannic  majesty ;   it  being,   however, 
clearly  unaerstood,  thai  no  interference  was  to  take  place  in  the 
religion,  government,  and  domestic  economy,  of  the  island — "  that 
Tamahamaha,  the  chiefs,  and  priests,  were  to  continue,  as  tututl,  to 
ojidate,  toith  the  same  authority  as  before,  in  their  resp^tive  stations, 
and  that  no  alteration  in  those  particulars  was  in  any  degree  thovght 
of  or  intended.^^     So  soon  as  this  resolution  was  announced.  Lieu- 
tenant Puget,  the  commander  of  the  Chatham,  landed,  displayed 
the  British  colors,  and  took  possession  of  the  island  in  the  name  of 
his  sovereign ;  after  which  a  salute  was  fired  from  the  vessels,  and  a 
copper  plate  was  deposited  in  a  conspicuous  place  at  the  royal  resi- 
dence, bearing  the  following  inscription  :  "On  the  25th  of  February, 
1794,  Tamahamaha,  king  of  Owyhee,  in  council  with  the  principal 
chiefs  of  the  island,  assembled  on  board  his  Britannic  majesty's 
sloop  Discovery,  in  Karakakooa  Bay,  and,  in  presence  of  George 
Vancouver,  commander  of  the  said  sloop,  Lieutenant  Peter  Puget, 
commander  of  his  said  majesty's  armed  tender  the  Chatham,  and 
the  other  officers  of  the  Discovery,  after  due  consideration,  unani- 
mously ceded  the  said  island  of  Owyhee  to  his  Britannic  majesty, 
and  acknowledged  themselves  to  be  subjects  of  Great  Britain." 

That  Vancouver  assumed  more  than  was  warranted,  in  thus 
asserting  the  cession  of  Owyhee,  and  the  subjection  of  its  chiefs  to 
Great  Britain,  is  clear ;  not  only  from  the  subsequent  declarations 
of  the  chiefs,  that  they  only  intended  to  place  themselves  under  the 
protection  of  that  power,  but  also  from  the  understanding  estab- 
lished betweefi  fhem  and  the  navigator,  that  there  was  to  be  no 
interference  in  their  internal  concerns.  At  farthest,  the  transaction, 
even  if  ratified  by  the  British  government,  can  only  be  viewed  as 
an  engagement,  on  the  part  of  the  islanders,  not  to  cede  their 
country  to  any  other  nation,  and,  on  the  part  of  Great  Britain,  to 
secure  them  against  conquest  or  oppression  by  any  other.  Most 
probably  each  of  the  parties  merely  dewred  to  obtain  for  itself  as 


252 


TAMAAHMOTO   RECEIVED   BT   VANCOCVEK. 


[1794. 


many  advantages  as  could  be  derived  from  the  transaction,  without 
any  intention  to  observe  concomitant  obligations.  Tamahamaha 
expected  to  receive  assistance  from  Great  Britain  in  conquering  the 
remaining  islands  of  the  group ;  and  Vancouver  wished  to  prevent 
other  nations  from  resorting  to  Owyhee.  It  may  be  added,  that 
Great  Britain  has,  to  this  day,  been  little,  if  at  all,  benefited  by  the 
Sandwich  Islands;  and  that  Tamahamaha,  though  he  lived  and 
flourished  for  twenty-five  years  after  the  transaction  above  men- 
tioned, never  received  a  present,  or  even  a  message  of  any  kind, 
from  his  brother  King  George,  to  whom  he,  however,  occasionally 
sent  a  message  by  a  whaling  captiiin,  reminding  him  that  Vancou- 
ver's promise  of  a  ship  of  war  had  not  yet  been  fulfilled.  No  such 
promise  is  recorded  in  the  journal  of  Vancouv3r ;  though  it  there 
appears  that  the  islanders  had  reason  to  believe  that  a  vessel  of  war 
would  be  sent,  for  their  protection,  from  Great  Britain. 

Another  circumstance  connected  with  this  pretended  cession  of 
Owyhee  to  the  British  deserves  particular  notice.  The  consumma- 
tion was  delayed  for  some  time,  on  account  of  the  absence  of 
Tamaahmoto,  or  Kamamoko,  one  cf  the  most  powerful  chiefs,  the 
same  who,  in  February,  1790,  captured  the  schooner  Fair  American, 
and  murdered  her  crew,  as  already  stated.  Vancouver  had,  at 
fiist,  refused  to  receive  this  man,  or  to  have  any  intercourse  with 
him ;  but  when  it  was  found  to  be  indispensable  for  the  cession, 
that  Tamaahmoto  should  give  his  vote  in  favor  of  it,  the  British 
commander  began  "seriously  to  reflect  on  all  the  circumstances 
that  had  attended  his  visits  to  the  islands ; "  and  he,  in  the  end, 
became  "  thoroughly  convinced  that  implacable  resentment  or  un- 
relenting anger,  exhibited  in  his  own  practice,  would  ill  accord 
with  the  precepts  which  he  had  endeavored  to  inculcate  for  the 
regulation  of  fheirs."  He  therefore  "  determined,  by  an  act  of 
oblivion  in  his  own  mind,  to  eflace  all  former  injuries  and  oflences," 
which  he  probably  found  no  difficulty  in  doing,  as  the  injuries  and 
offences  were  committed  against  citizens  of  the  United  States ;  and 
he  accordingly  intimated  that  he  would  "  no  longer  regard  Tamaah- 
moto as  undeserving  forgiveness,  and  would  allow  of  his  paying  the 
compliments  as  he  had  so  repeatedly  requested,  provided  he  would 
engage,  in  the  most  solemn  manner,  that  ne  ther  himself  nor  his 
people  (for  he  generally  Ui-oved  with  a  numeroi  s  train  of  attendants) 
would  behave  in  any  manner  so  as  to  disturb  th(  subsisting  harmony." 
On  receiving  this  intimation,  Tamaahmoto  readily  came  forward ; 
he  was  admitted  to  the  table  of  the  British  commander,  and  was 


1794.]    VANCOUVER   COMPLETES   THE    SURVEY   OF   THE    COAST.        253 

one  of  the  seven  chiefs  who  assented  to  the  cession.  It  is  not 
necessar  to  show  what  inference  the  natives  of  the  Sandwich 
Islands  might  draw  from  a  comparison  between  the  favor  thus 
shown  to  the  murderer  of  citizens  of  the  United  States,  and  the 
trial  and  execution  of  the  persons  who  were  charged  with  causing 
the  deaths  of  the  officers  of  the  British  vessel  at  Woahoo  * 

Soon  after  these  transactions,  the  British  navigators  took  their 
final  leave  of  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and,  returning  to  the  north-west 
coasts  of  America,  examined  every  port  which  they  had  not  previ- 
ously visited,  from  the  peninsula  of  Aliaska,  eastward  and  southward, 
to  Glueen  Chwrlotte's  Island.  They  began  at  Cook's  Rive  r,  nnd, 
having  ascertained  that  no  great  stream  entered  that  bay,  they 
changed  its  name  to  CooTc's  Inlet,  which  is  now  most  commonly 
applied  to  it.  They  then  proceeded  to  Prince  William's  Sound,  the 
shores  of  which  were  completely  surveyed ;  and  thence  along  the 
bases  of  Mounts  St.  Elias  and  Fairweather,  to  the  great  opening 
in  the  coast,  near  the  58th  degree  of  latitude,  which  had  been  called 
by  Cook  Cross  Sound.  In  Cook's  Inlet  and  Prince  William's 
Sound,  they  visited  all  the  Bussian  establishments,  of  which  Van- 
couver presents  full  and  satisfactory  accounts ;  and,  having  succeeded 
in  proving  that  the  place  in  whidi  Bering  anchored  on  his  last 
expedition  could  be  no  other  than  that  called  Admiralty  Bay,  at 
the  foot  of  Mount  St.  Elias,  on  the  east,  they  gave  to  it  the  name  of 
Bering's  Bay,  and  as  such  it  generally  appears  on  English  charts  : 
the  Russians  call  it  the  Bay  of  YaTcatat. 

Through  Cross  Sound,  Vancouver  passed  into  a  labyrinth  of 
channels,  some  among  islands,  others  running  far  inland,  and  termi- 
nating in  the  midst  of  stupendous  mountains ;  and,  having  succeeded 
in  threading  nearly  all  these  passages,  particularly  those  taking  a 
northern  or  eastern  direction,  and  thus  joined  his  survey  with  that  of 
the  preceding  year,  he  considered  his  task  accomplished.  He  had 
made  known  the  existence  of  an  almost  infinite  number  of  islands, 
between  the  54th  and  the  58th  parallels,  in  the  position  assigned 
to  the  Archipelago  of  St.  Lazarus,  in  the  story  of  Fonte's  voyage ; 
but  whilst  a  part  of  that  story  thus  seemed  to  be  confirmed,  the 
remainder  was  supposed  to  be  entirely  disproved,  as  no  great  river 

"  Tamaahmoto  did  ..ot,  however,  scruple  to  declare,  two  years  afterwards,  that  ho 
would  take  the  first  vessel  which  might  come  within  his  reach;  and  so  little  effect 
had  the  exfculions  at  Woahoo,  that  Captain  Brown,  of  the  British  ship  Butterworth, 
was  killed,  in  January,  1795,  by  the  natives  of  that  island,  in  an  attack  which  they 
made  on  his  vessel  with  the  intention  to  take  her.  —  See  Broughfon's  account  of  his 
voyage  in  the  Pacific,  p.  43. 


*  mm 


-E-.TTftl 


-5?8|#s 


254 


SfriKI  rS     RITBH. 


[1794. 


was  found  issuing  from  the  continent  opposite  these  islands ;  and 
Vancouver  became  well  satisfied  "that  the  precision  with  which 
his  survey  h.  been  conducted  would  remove  every  doubt,  and  set 
aside  every  opinion  of  a  north-west  passage,  or  an  ivater  communi- 
cation navigable  for  shipping,  between  tho  NortSi  "acific  and  the 
interior  of  the  American  continent,  within  the  limit  of  his  re- 
searches." The  belief  thus  expressed  by  the  navigator  has  been 
completely  confirmed.  It  must,  nevertheless,  be  admitted  that,  con- 
sidering the  intricacies  in  the  coasts  between  the  48th  and  the  58th 
parallels,  many  passages,  by  which  vessels  could  penetrate  into  the 
interior  of  the  continent,  might  have  long  escaped  the  notice  of  the 
most  careful  observer ;  and  in  evidence  of  this  is  the  fact,  that  a 
river  called  the  Stikine,^  three  miles  wide  at  its  mouth,  and  a  mile 
wlJe  thirty  miles  higher  up,  has  been,  since  Vancouver's  voyage, 
found  entering  the  arm  of  the  sea  named  by  him  Prince  Fredcrid's 
Sound,  in  the  latitude  of  56  degrees  50  minutes.  Vancouver's 
failure  to  discover  the  mouth  of  the  Coluiubia  should  have  ren- 
dered him  distrustful  of  the  entire  accuracy  of  his  observations  in 
such  cases. 

After  completing  these  discoveries,  Vancouver  took  possession  of 
the  part  of  the  continent  extending  north-westward  of  that  around 
the  Sti  >'t  of  Fuca,  which  he  had  named  Netv  Georgia,  as  far  as 
the  59t,!i  d  gree  of  latitude,  and  of  hII  the  adjacent  islands,  "in 
the  n"w.':i  f!  his  Britannic  majesty,  his  heirs  and  successors,"  with 
the  iorniuisues  usual  on  such  occasions,  including  a  double  allow- 
ance oi"  ^rog  to  the  sailors.  He  also  bestowed  upon  the  various 
territories,  straits,  bays,  &c.,  names  derived  almost  entirely  from 
the  lists  of  the  members  of  the  royal  family,  the  ministry,  the  Par- 
liament, the-  army  and  the  navy  of  Great  Britain ;  the  importance 

*  Vancouver  mentions  Stikeen  as  the  name  of  a  country  or  nation  on  the  conti- 
nental shore  of  Prince  Frederick's  Sound;  and  he  heard,  from  the  natives  farther 
south,  of  a  place  in  that  sound  called  by  them  Uon-nass,  which  word  seemed  to  mean 
great  channel.  The  first  inliniiiiir.,i  of  the  existence  of  the  river  was  probably  com- 
municated to  the  world  by  the  captain  of  the  ship  Atahualpa,  of  Boston,  from  whose 
journal  an  extract  is  published  in  the  Collections  of  the  Massachusetts  Historical 
Society  for  1804,  p.  242.    The  captain  there  says, — 

"  August  25th,  1802.  I  had  some  conversation  with  Cou  (a  chief  of  an  island  near 
Queen  Charlotte's  Sound)  respecting  the  natives  v/ho  inhabit  the  country  back  of 
Stikeen :  he  had  his  information  from  Cokshoo,  the  Stikeen  chief.  *  •  *  Cou 
also  informs  me  that  the  place  called  J^ass,  or  Uon-nass  (spoken  of  by  Vancouver)  by 
the  natives  in  Chebassa  Strait,  (Prince  Frederick's  Sound,)  is  the  mouth  of  a  river  of 
very  considerable  extent,  but  unknown,  navigable  for  vessels  oi  large  canoes."  Near 
this  place,  the  Atahualpa  was  attacked,  in  January,  1805,  and  her  captain,  mate,  and 
aiz  seamen,  were  killed :  the  others  of  her  crew  succeeded  in  escaping  with  the  vessel. 


[1794. 


1794.]  MAMl.3    or    Pl^ACBB    ON   TUB    NOIITH-WBST   C0A8T. 


i255 


ids ;  and 
th  which 
t,  and  ,s«t 
sommuni- 

and  tho 
f  his  re- 
has  been 
that,  con- 
l  the  58th 
te  into  the 
tice  of  the 
act,  that  a 
Eind  a  mile 
r's  voyage, 
Fredcrid's 
ancouver's 

have  ren- 
rvations  in 

►ssession  of 
that  around 
f,  as  far  as 
ilands,  "in 
rs,"  with 
ible  allow- 
Lhe  various 
itirely  from 
•y,  the  Par- 
importance 

on  the  conti- 

latives  farther 

lemed  to  mean 

Iprobably  com- 

1,  from  whose 

;tta  Historical 

Ian  island  near 
Inntry  back  of 
>  *  Cou 
^Tancouver)  by 
t  of  a  river  of 
tinoes."  Near 
ain,  mate,  and 
rith  the  vessel. 


of  the  place  thus  distinguished  being  generally  in  proportion  to  the 
rank  of  the  individual.  Thus  we  find  upon  his  «hart  of  the  north- 
west archipelago,  tho  large  islands  <n  groups  of  King  George  the 
Third,  the  Prince  of  Walet,  the  Duke  of  York,  and  the  Admiralty ; 
wit  1 1  the  smaller  ones  of  Pitt,  Hawketbury,  Dundas,  and  Burke ; 
bctv\  uen  which  are  the  Duke  of  Clarence' $  Strait,  Prince  Frederick')/ 
Sound,  Chatham  Canal,  Grenville  Canal,  and  Stephens's  Passage  : 
a  small  group,  near  the  55th  parallel,  partially  surveyed  by  Caamano, 
in  1791,  was  allowed  to  retain  the  namu  of  Btmllagigedo  Islands, 
in  hon  )r  of  the  enlightened  viceroy  of  Mexi'  The  capeb,  bays, 
and  smaller  points  or  channels,  are  di8tril<  *he  fVindhams, 

Walpoles,  and  other  hiirli  families,  priiu  )elonging  to 

the  Tory   pari,  ,  one  littl*!   point  being,  ,  ouchsafed  to 

Charles  James  Fox.  Without  questioning  v.iv  right  of  the  discov- 
erer to  impose  these  names,  it  may  be  observed,  that  none  of  them 
will,  in  all  probability,  ever  be  used  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  region 
in  which  the  place  so  called  is  situated.  The  Russians,  who  occupy 
the  islands  and  coasts  of  the  main-land  north  of  the  54th  parallel, 
rigorously  exclude  from  their  charts,  and  from  use  in  every  way,  the 
appellations  assigned  to  places  ii  their  dominions  by  people  of  other 
civilized  countries ;  and  even  the  British  traders,  whose  posts  extend 
through  the  parts  of  tho  continent  distinguished  by  Vancouver  as 
New  Georgia,  New  Hanover,  New  Cornwall,  and  New  Norfolk, 
appear  to  be  entirely  ignorant  of  those  names. 

From  the  northern  coasts,  Vancouver,  when  his  labor  was  ended, 
went  to  Nootka,  where  he  found  the  Spaniards  still  n  possession, 
under  the  command  of  Brigadier  Alava ;  Quadra  having  died  in  the 
preceding  spring,  at  San  Bias.  As  no  information  had  been  received 
there  from  Europe  respecting  the  surrcMiJer  of  the  territories,  the 
British  commander  sailed  to  Monterey,  where  he  learned  that  the 
question  had  been  "  adjusted  by  the  two  courts  amicably,  and  nearly 
on  the  terms  which  he  had  repeatedly  offered  to  Quadra  in  Sep- 
tember, 1792;"  and  also  "that  the  business  was  not  to  be  carried 
into  execution  by  him,  as  a  fresh  comniission  had  been  issued  for 
the  purpose  by  the  court  of  London."  Under  these  circumstances, 
he  resolved  to  return  immediately  to  Europe ;  and  he  accordingly 
quitted  Monterey  on  the  2d  of  December,  1794.  On  his  way 
southward,  he  examined  the  Californian  coast,  though  not  minutely, 
as  far  as  Cape  San  Lucas,  from  which  he  took  his  departure  for 
Valparaiso,  in  Chili.  After  a  short  stay  at  that  place,  he  passed 
around  Cape  Horn,  and  arrived  in  England  b  November,  1795 ; 


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END   or   THE   NOOTKA   CONTBOVEBST 


[1796. 


having  completed,  in  the  most  efTectual  manner,  the  mv)st  extensive 
nautical  survey  which  had  ever  been  made  in  one  expedition.* 

No  accormt  has  yet  transpired  of  the  negotiation  between  the 
courts  of  London  and  Madrid,  respecting  the  extent  of  territory,  and 
the  buildings  on  the  north-west  coasts  of  America,  which  were  to  be 
restored  to  British  subjects,  after  the  reference  of  that  question  to 
them  by  their  commissioners.  Lieutenant  Broughton,  who  had 
been  despatched  to  England  by  Vancouver  in  1793,  was  thence 
sent  by  the  government  on  this  business  to  Madrid ;  and,  on  his 
return  to  London,  he  was  ordered  to  proceed  to  the  North  Pacific, 
in  the  sloop  Providence,  for  the  purpose  of  surveying  the  coasts  of 
Asia,  near  Japan,  being  commissioned,  at  the  same  time,  to  receive 
possession  of  the  territories  at  Nootka,  in  case  the  restitution  should 
not  have  been  previously  made.  He  accordingly  sailed  from  Eng- 
land for  Nootka,  where,  in  April,  1796,  he  was  informed,  by  letters 
left  in  charge  of  Maquinna,t  "  that  the  Spaniards  had  deUvered  up 
the  port  of  Nootka,  &.c.,  to  Lieutenant  Pierce,  of  the  marines, 
agreeably  to  the  mode  of  restitution  settled  between  the  two  courts," 

*  Vancouver's  journal  and  charts  were  published  at  London  in  1798,  before  which 
period  the  navigator  had  sunk  into  the  grave.  His  journal  is  a  simple  record  of  obser- 
vations  and  occurrences,  written  in  a  plain  and  intelligible,  though  homely  and  un- 
pretending style ;  and  it  is  entirely  free  from  those  displays  of  imagination,  in  the 
shape  of  long  political  and  philosophical  disquisitions  with  which  such  works  are 
oflen  overloaded.  The  charts  and  views  of  the  land  are  admirably  executed,  and  their 
accuracy  has  been  since  generally  confirmed.  We  are,  in  fact,  indebted  to  Vancouver 
and  his  officers  for  our  knowledge  of  the  outline  of  the  whole  western  coasts  of  Amer- 
ica, from  the  peninsula  of  California  to  the  peninsula  of  Aliaska;  of  which  all  the 
principal  points  have  been  ascertained  with  the  utmost  precision,  so  that  succeeding 
navigators  have  only  had  to  make  corrections  in  the  intermediate  spaces.  Vancouver 
himself  was  certainly  a  man  of  great  courage ,  perseverance,  and  professional  sicill, 
possessing  also  good  temper  and  good  feelings,  except  with  regard  to  citizens  of  the 
United  States,  against  whom  and  their  country  he  cherished  the  most  bitter  animosity. 
While  admitting,  with  frankness,  the  merits  of  subjects  of  other  nations,  as  discoverers 
or  as  men,  he  did  not  hesitate  to  adopt  unworthy  means  to  deprive  the  Americans  of 
the  reputation  which  they  had  justly  earned  by  their  labors  in  exploring,  and  to  blacken 
their  characters  aa  individuak :  for  this  object,  he  made  use  of  misrepresentations, 
misstatements,  insinuations,  and  concealments,  whenever  occasions  presented  them- 
selves; and  that  which  he  would  have  commended  in  a  Briton,  or  excused  in  a  Rus- 
sian or  a  Span-ard,  became  criminal  in  his  eyes  when  committed  by  a  citizen  of  the 
bated  republic.  He,  nevertheless,  appears  to  have  given  satisfaction  to  all  with 
whom  he  came  personally  into  communication.  Ingraham  speaks  of  him  with  the 
utmost  respect,  and  acknowledges  his  obligations  for  the  uniform  kindness  of  the 
British  navigator.  In  the  Sandwich  Islands  his  memory  is  universally  cherished. 
He  was  long  expected  to  return  and  establish  himself  there,  as  a  commissioner  from 
his  sovereign ;  and  he  probably  would  have  been  admitted  among  the  number  of 
their  gods,  if  the  ship  which  he  is  said  to  have  promised  to  Tamahamaha  had  ever 
Deen  sent. 
,     t  Journal  of  a  Voyage  in  the  Pacific,  by  Captain  Robert  Broughton,  p.  50. 


[1796. 

st  extensive 
iition.* 
}etween  the 
jrritory,  and 
1  were  to  be 
,  question  to 
n,  who  had 
,  was  thence 
and,  on  his 
lorth  Pacific, 
the  coasts  of 
ne,  to  receive 
itution  should 
ed  from  Eng- 
(led,  by  letters 
1  delivered  up 
'  the  marines, 
le  two  courte," 

1798,  before  which 
pie  record  of  obser- 
jh  homely  and  un- 
maginaUon,  in  the 
h  Buch  works  are 
executed,  and  their 
»bted  to  Vancouver 
irn  coasts  of  Amet- 
,,  of  which  all  the 
BO  that  succeeding 
ices.    Vancouver 
professional  skill, 
_  to  citizens  of  the 
ist  bitter  animosity, 
[ions,  as  discoverers 
the  Americans  of 
ig,  and  to  blacken 
liiisrepresentations, 
IS  presented  thein- 
excused  in  a  Rus- 
hy a  citizen  of  the 
faction  to  all  with 
:8  of  him  with  the 
1  kindness  of  the 
rersally  cherished. 
:ommissioner  from 
igthe  number  of 
[ahamaha  had  ever 


1796.] 


END  OF  THE  NOOTKA  CONTROVERST. 


257 


in  March,  1795,  after  which  the  place  had  been  entirely  evacuated 
by  both  parties.  This  is  the  account  given  by  Broughton  in  his 
journal,  which,  however,  affords  no  information  as  to  the  mode  of 
restitution  thus  settled.  On  the  other  hand,  Belsham,  an  historian 
who,  notwithstanding  the  violence  of  his  prejudices,  cannot  be  sus- 
pected of  want  of  attachment  to  the  honor  or  interests  of  his  country, 
and  who  possessed  ample  means  of  ascertaining  the  fact,  writes,  in 
1805,*  "  It  is  nevertheless  certain,  from  the  most  authentic  subse- 
quent information,  that  the  Spanish  flag  flying  at  Nootka  was  never 
struck,  and  that  the  territory  has  been  virtually  relinquished  by 
Great  Britain."  It  indeed  seems  very  improbable  that  the  British 
government,  which  had  just  concluded  a  treaty  of  alliance  with 
Spain,  and  had  induced  that  power  to  declare  war  against  France, 
when  Broughton  was  sent  to  the  Pacific,  should  at  the  same  time 
have  required  the  surrender  of  this  territory,  or  that  Spain  should 
have  assented  to  it  while  she  possessed  the  right,  by  the  convention, 
to  indemnify  the  British  claimants  for  all  such  losses  of  land  or  build- 
ings, as  they  could  prove  to  have  been  sustained  by  them,  since  the 
month  of  April,  1789.  It  is  more  reasonable  to  suppose  that,the 
Spaniards  merely  abandoned  the  place,  the  occupation  of  which  was 
useless  and  very  expensive.f  Since  that  period,  no  civilized  nation 
has  ever  attempted  to  form  an  establishment  at  Nootka  Sound,  nor 
have  the  Spaniards  occupied  any  spot  on  the  Pacific  coast  of  America 
north  of  Port  San  Francisco. 

In  July,  1796,  Spain,  having  been  unsuccessful  in  her  hostile 
operations  against  the  French  republic,  was  obliged  to  make  peace 
with  that  power ;  and,  in  October  following,  she  was  likewise  obliged 

*  History  of  Great  Britain,  vol.  viii.  p.  337. 

t  In  the  library  of  Congress,  at  Washington,  is  an  interesting  Spaviish  manuscript 
presented  by  General  Tomel,  during  his  residence  in  the  Unit/^d  States  as  minister 
firom  Mexico,  entitled  "Instruccion  reservada  del  Reyno  de  Hueva  Esparia  que  el 
Ezmo.  Seiior  Virrey  Conde  de  Revillagigedo  did  d  su  Sucesor  el  Exmo.  Seiior  Mar- 
ques de  Branciforte  en  el  Ano  de  1794  "  —  Secret  Instructions  respecting  the  Kingdom  of 
New  Spain,  given,  in  1794,  by  the  Viceroy,  Count  de  Revillagigedo,  to  his  Successor,  the 
Marquis  de  Branciforte.  This  work,  which  abounds  in  curious  details  relative  to  the 
administration  of  affairs  in  Mexico,  has  been  carefully  examined  with  reference  to  the 
objects  of  the  present  memoir.  Nothing,  however,  has  been  collected  from  it,  except 
in  confirmation  of  statements  elsewhere  made.  The  paragraphs  from  703  to  713,  in- 
clusive, are  devoted  to  the  Marine  Department  of  San  Bias,  to  which,  as  already  men- 
tioned, the  care  of  the  Spanish  colonies  in  California  was  committed.  The  count 
recommends  to  his  successor  the  maintenance  of  those  colonies,  as  the  best  means  of 
preserving  Mexico  from  foreign  influences ;  advising  him,  at  the  same  time,  however, 
J  not  to  extend  the  «>8tablishment8  beyond  the  Strait  of  Puca.  With  regard  to  Nootka, 
it  ia  merely  stated,  in  paragraph  713,  that  orders  had  been  sent  to  the  commandant  to 
abandon  the  phice,  agreeably  to  a  royal  dictamen. 
33 


1    fk 


I     r^^' 


358 


WAR   BETWEEN    SPAIN   AND    ENGLAND. 


[1796. 


to  declare  war  against  her  former  ally,  Great  Britain.  In  the  mani- 
festo published  by  the  court  of  Madrid,  on  the  latter  occasion,  <<  the 
frequent  arrival  of  English  vessels  on  the  coasts  of  Peru  and  Chili, 
to  carry  on  contraband  trkde,  and  to  reconnoitre  those  coasts, 
under  the  pretext  of  the  whale  fishery,  which  privilege  they  claimed 
under  the  Nootka  convention,"  is  alleged  among  the  causes  of  the 
rupture.  The  British  government,  in  its  answer,  denied  "  that  the 
whale  fishery  by  the  English,  in  these  parts,  was,  as  asserted,  claimed 
in  the  convention  of  Nootka,  as  then  for  the  first  time  established," 
insisting  that  the  right  was,  in  that  convention,  "  solemnly  recognized 
by  the  court  of  Madrid,  as  having  always  belonged  to  Great  Britain, 
and  the  full  and  undisturbed  exercise  of  which  was  guarantied  to 
his  majesty's  subjects,  in  terms  so  express,  and  in  a  transaction  so 
recent,  that  ignorance  of  it  cannot  be  pretended."  That  Great 
Britain  did  always  possess  the  right  to  fish  in  the  Pacific  and  South- 
ern Oceans,  agreeably  to  the  principles  of  common  justice,  is  un- 
questionable;  but  that  this  right  was  acknowledged  by  ^Spain  in 
the  Nootka  convention,  or  in  any  other  treaty  between  those  powers 
previous  to  1796,  is  by  no  means  exact.  In  the  Nootka  conven- 
tion, all  assertions  dnd  recognitions  of  rights  are,  on  the  contrary, 
avoided ;  the  whole  instrument  being,  in  fact,  a  series  of  conces- 
sions, limitations,  and  restrictions,  resting  entirely  on  the  consent  of 
both,  parties,  and  expiring  on  the  withdrawal  of  its  consent  by  either. 
On  this  declaration  of  war  by  Spain  against  Britain,  the  Nootka 
convention,  with  all  its  stipulations,  of  whatsoever  nature  they  might 
have  been,  expired,  agreeably  to  the  rule  universally  observed  and 
enforced  among  civilized  nations,  thr^  H  treaties  are  ended  by  war 
between  the  parties.  From  that  nu  ',  Spain  might,  as  before 
the  convention,  claim  the  exclusive  navigation  of  the  Pacific  and 
Southern  Oceans,  and  the  sovereignty  of  all  their  American  coasts ; 
and  Great  Britain  might  Oif.  in  assert  the  right  of  her  subjects  to  sail 
and  fish  in  every  open  sea,  and  to  settle  on  every  unoccupied  coast.* 

From  the  preceding  view  of  the  circumstances  connected  with 
the  convention  of  October,  1790,  and  the  occupation  of  Nootka 
Sound  by  the  Spaniards,  we  are  authorized  to  conclude,  — 

That  no  part  of  "  the  north-west  coasts  of  the  continent  of  North 
America,  or  of  the  adjacent  islands,"  had  ever  been  owned  or  occu- 
pied by  British  subjects,  anterior  to  the  establishment  of  the  Spanish 
post  at  Nootka  Sound,  in  May,  1789:   Consequently, — 


*  Farther  considerations  on  this  subject  will  be  found  in  the  fifteenth  chapter  of 
tl^is  History. 


1796.] 


WAR  BETWEEN    PPAIN   AND   ENGLAND. 


259 


That  no  "  buildings  or  tracts  of  land,"  on  those  coasts  or  islands, 
were  "  to  be  restored  to  British  subjects,"  agreeably  to  the  first  and 
second  articles  of  the  convention  of  October,  1790 :  And,  as  a 
further  consequence, — 

That  the  abandonment  of  Nootka  Sound  by  the  Spaniards  in 
1795,  under  whatsoever  circumstances  it  may  have  been  effected, 
gave  to  Great  Britain  no  other  rights  at  that  place,  than  those  which 
she  enjoyed  in  common  with  Spain,  in  every  other  part  of  the  coasts 
and  islands  north  of  Port  San  Francisco,  by  virtue  of  the  third  and 
fifth  articles  of  the  same  convention. 


'■  .  'i 


■\,j&:>i.. 


•a  ■'a 


^?^^' 


-.1  i,'"i:.J 

CHAPTER 

XII. 

1788  TO  1810. 

Establishment  of  the  North- We -it  Fur  Trading  Company  of  Montreal,  in  1783  — 
Expeditions  of  Mackenzie  to  the  Arctic  Sea  and  to  the  Pacific  Coast  —  The  Trade 
between  the  North  Pacific  Coasts  of  America  and  Canton  conducted  almoBt  ex- 
clusively by  Vessels  of  the  United  States  from  1796  to  1814  —  Establishment  of 
the  Russian  American  Company  —  Its  Settlements  and  Factories  on  the  American 
Coasts  —  Expedition  of  Krusenstern  through  the  North  Pacific  —  Proposition  of 
the  Russian  Government  to  that  of  the  United  States,  with  Regard  to  the  Trade 
of  the  North  Pacific. 


Whilst  the  navigators  of  various  nations  were  thus  completing 
the  survey  of  the  shores  of  North- West  America,  important  infor- 
mation respecting  the  interior  regions  of  that  section  of  the  conti- 
nent was  obtained  by  the  agents  of  an  association  formed  at 
Montreal,  in  1784,  for  the  prosecution  of  the  fur  trade  in  the  Indian 
territories,  which  were  supposed  to  be  beyond  the  jurisdiction  of 
the  Hudson's  Bay  Company. 

Before  Canada  came  into  the  possession  of  Great  Britain,  a  large, 
if  not  the  greater,  portion  of  the  furs  sent  from  America  by  the 
subjects  of  that  power  was  shipped  from  New  York.  After  that 
period,  Montreal  became  the  principal  seat  of  the  trade ;  and  dis- 
putes immediately  arose  between  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  which 
claimed  the  whole  division  of  America  drained  by  streams  falling 
into  that  sea,  and  the  Canadians,  who  pursued  their  trade  in  the 
southern  and  western  parts  of  that  territory.  These  disputes,  with 
which  the  British  government  did  not,  from  policy,  choose  to  inter- 
fere, were  injurious  to  the  interests  of  both  parties ;  and,  the  Indian 
countries  north  of  Lake  Superior  having  been,  about  the  same 
time,  almost  depopulated  by  the  smallpox,  the  trade  was  confined, 
for  some  years,  to  the  environs  of  Hudson's  Bay,  the  lower  lakes, 
and  the  St.  Lawrence,  where  the  animals  were  less  numerous,  and 
their  furs  inferior  in  quality. 

At  length,  about  the  year  1775,  some  enterprising  merchants  of 
Montreal  penetrated  into  the  countries,  far  north-west  of  Lake 
Superior,  drained  by  the  Saskatchawine  and  Athabasca  Rivers, 


1784.1 


NORTB-WEST   COMPANY   FORMED. 


261 


which  had  long  before  been  frequented  by  the  French ;  and  their 
success  in  trade  was  such  as  to  induce  others  to  make  similar  ex- 
peditions. The  Canadians  were,  however,  exposed,  on  their  way, 
to  great  difficulties  and  annoyances  from  the  Hudson's  Bay  Com 
pany,  with  which  they  were  unable  separately  to  contend ;  and 
they,  in  consequence,  in  the  year  1784,  united  their  interests,  and 
assumed  for  their  association  the  title  of  the  North-  West  Company 
of  Montreal.  Other  associations  were  afterwards  formed,  under 
diflerent  names ;  but  they  were  soon  either  dissolved  or  united  with 
the  North- West  Company. 

The  organization  of  this  new  company  was  such,  as  to  insure  the 
utmost  regularity  and  devotion  to  the  interests  of  the  concern, 
among  all  who  were  engaged  in  its  service.  The  number  of  the 
shares  was  at  first  sixteen ;  it  was  afterwards  increased  to  twenty, 
and  then  to  forty :  a  certain  proportion  of  them  was  held  by  the 
agents,  residing  in  Montreal,  who  furnished  the  capital ;  the  remain- 
der being  distributed  umong  the  proprietors,  or  partners,  who  super- 
intended the  business  in  the  forts  or  posts  in  the  interior,  and  the 
ckrh,  who  traded  directly  with  the  Indians.  The  clerks  were 
young  men,  for  the  most  part  natives  of  Scotland,  who  entered  the 
service  of  the  company  for  five  or  seven  years ;  and,  at  the  end  of 
that  time,  or  even  earlier,  if  they  conducted  themselves  well,  they 
were  admitted  as  proprietors.  The  inferior  servants  of  the  com- 
pny  were  guides,  interpreters,  and  voyageurs,  the  latter  being 
employed  as  porters  on  land,  and  as  boatmen  on  the  water,  all  of 
whom  were  bound  to  the  interests  of  the  body  by  hopes  of  advance- 
ment in  station  or  in  pay,  and  of  pensions  in  their  old  age. 

The  agents  imported  from  England  the  goods  required  for  the 
trade,  had  thsm  packed  into  bundles  of  about  ninety  pounds 
weight  each,  and  despatched  them  to  the  different  posts ;  and  they 
received  the  furs  in  packs  of  the  same  size,  and  conducted  the 
shipment  and  sale  of  them.  The  furs,  as  also  the  articles  for  the 
trade  and  use  of  the  persons  employed,  were  transported  through 
the  continent  principally  in  canoes,  for  which  the  Ottowa  River, 
Lakes  Huron  and  Superior,  and  the  other  innumerable  lakes,  and 
the  streams  connecting  them  farther  north-west,  offered  great  fa- 
cilities ;  the  portage  between  the  navigable  waters  on  the  lines  of 
the  route  being  effected  by  the  voyageurs,  who  carried  the  bundles, 
and  sometimes,  also,  the  canoes,  across  the  intervening  tracts  of 
land.  In  this  manner  the  goods  and  furs  passed  one,  two,  and  even 
three,  thousand  miles  between  the  agent  at  Montreal  and  the  pro- 


is"' . 


4  mi 


'i 


862 


EXPEDITION   TO   THE   ROCKl    MOUNTAINS. 


[1788. 


prietor  at  the  trading-post ;  and  nearly  four  years  elapsed  between 
the  period  of  ordering  the  goods  in  Canada,  and  that  at  which  the 
furs  could  be  sold  in  London. 

Before  the  formation  of  the  North- West  Company,  the  farther- 
most trading  establishment  of  British  subjects  was  one  on  the 
Athabasca  or  Elk  River,  about  twelve  hundred  miles  north-west  of 
Lake  Superior,  which  had  been  founded  by  Messrs.  Frobisher  and 
Pond,  in  1778 ;  and  this  continued  to  be  the  principal  post  in  that 
part  of  the  continent  for  ten  years,  when  it  was  abandoned,  and 
another,  called  Fort  Chipewyan,  was  established  on  the  south-west 
side  of  the  Athabasca  Lake,  or  Lake  of  the  Hills,  into  which 
the  Elk  River  discharges  its  waters.  In  the  mean  time,  several 
large  parties  had  been  sent,  for  the  purposes  of  trade  and  discovery, 
from  Canada  towards  the  west,  one  of  which,  consisting  of  about 
a  hundred  men,  penetrated  to  the  foot  of  the  great  dividing  chain 
then  called  the  Shining  Mountains,  or  Mountains  of  Bright  Stones, 
and  now  conunonly  known  as  the  Rocky  Mountains ;  *  but  they  were 

*  Of  this  expedition  an  account  appeared  in  a  letter  written  at  Pittsburg,  in  1791, 
by  an  officer  of  General  St.  Clair's  army,  and  published  in  the  Collections  of  the 
Massachusetts  Historical  Society  for  1794.    The  writer,  whose  name  is  not  given, 

received  his  information  from  a  Mr.  M ,  who  had,  as  he  said,  commanded  the 

party  in  question.  The  following  extracts  will  show  the  principal  circumstances 
connected  with  the  expedition,  and  among  them  will  be  found  nothing  which  should 
induce  us  to  doubt  the  truth  of  the  account :  — 

"  Mr.  M.  stated  that  he  had,  about  five  years  ago,  departed  from  Montreal,  with 
a  company  of  about  one  hundred  men,  for  the  purpose  of  making  a  tour  through  the 
Indian  countries,  to  collect  furs,  and  to  make  remarks,  &c.  He  pursued  his  route 
from  Montreal,  and  entered  the  Indian  country,  and  coasted  about  three  hundred 
leagues  along  the  banks  of  Lake  Superior,  whence  he  made  his  way  to  the  Lake  of 
the  Woods,  of  which  he  took  an  accurate  survey,  and  found  it  to  be  thirty-six  leagues 
in  length,  and  thence  to  Lake  Ounipique,  [Winnipeg,]  of  which  he  also  gives  a 
description.  The  tribes  of  Indians  through  which  he  passed  were  called  the  Mus- 
kego,  Shipewyan,  Cithnistinee,  Great-belly,  Beaver,  Blood,  Black-feet,  Snake, 
Ossnobian,  tihiveyton,  Mandon,  Paunee,  and  several  others,  &c.  In  pursuing  his 
route,  he  found  no  difficulty  in  obtaining  a  guide  to  accompany  him  from  one  nation 
to  another,  until  he  reached  the  foot  of  the  Shining  Mountains,  or  Mountains  of  Bright 
Stones,  where,  in  attempting  to  pass,  he  was  frustrated  by  the  hostile  appearance  of 
the  Indians  who  inhabit  that  part  of  the  country ;  the  consequence  of  which  was, 
that  he  was  disappointed  in  his  intention,  and  obliged  to  turn  his  back  upon  them. 
Having  collected  a  number  of  Indians,  he  went  forward  again,  with  an  intention  to 
force  his  way  over  these  mountains,  if  necessary  and  practicable,  and  to  reach  Cook's 
River,  on  the  not  Ji- west  coast  of  America,  supposed  by  him  to  be  about  three 
hundred  leajjues  from  the  mountuns ;  but  the  inhabitants  of  the  mountains  again  met 
him  with  their  bows  and  arrows,  and  so  superior  were  they  in  numbers  to  his  little 
forces,  that  he  was  obliged  to  flee  before  them.  Cold  weather  coming  on,  he  built 
huts  for  himself  and  party  in  the  Ossnobian  [Assinaboin]  country,  and  near  to  the 
source  of  a  large  river  called  the  Ossnobian  River,  where  they  tarried  during  the 
cold  season,  and  until  some  time  in  the  warm  months." 


V 


1789.] 


MACKF.NKIV!    RF.AnHRH    TUU    AKUTIU    SEA. 


368 


psed  between 
at  which  the 

f,  the  farther- 
I  one  on  the 
north-west  of 
Frobisher  and 
il  post  in  that 
bandoned,  and 
the  south-west 
Is,  into  which 
1  time,  several 

and  discovery, 
isting  of  about 

dividing  chtun 
'Bright  Stmes, 
*  but  they  were 

t  Pittsburg,  in  1791, 
e  CoUectiong  of  the 
name  is  not  given, 
aid,  commanded  the 
icipal  circuraBtimces 
otfcing  which  should 

from  Montreal,  with 
g  a  tour  through  the 
le  pursued  his  route 
ibout  three  hundred 
way  to  the  Lake  of 
be  thirty-six  leagues 
lich  he  also  gives  a 
ere  called  the  Mus- 
Black-feet,  Snake, 
JO.    In  pursuing  his 
him  from  one  nation 
Mountains  of  Bright 
ostile  appearance  of 
lence  of  which  vjas, 
lis  back  upon  them. 
with  an  intention  to 
and  to  reach  Cook'« 
to  be  about  three 
[mountsins  agwn  met 
lumbers  to  his  little 
,  coming  on,  he  bmlt 
ntry,  and  near  to  the 

W  tarried  during  ^ 


x. 


unable  to  proceed  farther,  in  consequence  of  the  hostile  dispositions 
of  the  natives. 

Between  1788  and  1794,  two  other  expeditions  were  made  from 
Fort  Chipewyan  by  Mr.  Alexander  Mackenzie,  the  superintending 
proprietor  at  that  place,  of  which  a  particular  account  should  be 
here  given,  as  the  geographical  information  obtained  in  them  was 
highly  interesting,  and  led  to  important  commercial  and  political 
results.*  ' 

The  Athabasca  Lake  is  a  basin  about  two  hundred  miles  in 
length  from  east  to  west,  and  about  thirteen  in  average  breadth,  sit- 
uated under  the  59th  parallel  of  latitude,  midvmy  between  the 
Pacific  Ocean  and  Hudson's  Bay.  It  is  supplied  by  several  streams, 
of  which  the  principal  are  the  Athabasca  or  Elk  River,  flowing  from 
the  south,  and  the  Unjigah  or  Peace  River,  from  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, on  the  west ;  and  its  waters  are  discharged  through  the  Slave 
River,  running  about  two  hundred  miles  north,  into  the  Great  Slave 
Lake,  discovered  by  Hearne  in  1771.  All  these  rivers  join  the 
Athabasca  Lake  at  its  south-west  end,  near  which  Fort  Chipewyan 
was  then  situated.  ->  ■- 

Mackenzie's  first  expedition  was  made  in  1789,  and  its  principal 
object  was  to  ascertain  the  course  of  the  waters  from  the  Great  Slave 
Lake  to  the  sea,  which  Hearne  had  left  undetermined.  For  this 
purpose,  he  left  Fort  Chipewyan,  with  his  party,  in  bark  canoes,  on 
the  3d  of  June,  1789,  and,  passing  down  the  Slave  River  into  the 
Great  Slave  Lake,  he  discovered  a  large  stream  flowing  out  of  the 
latter  basin,  at  its  north-west  extremity,  to  which  he  gave  the  name 
of  Mackenzie  River ;  and  this  stream  he  descended  about  nine 
hundred  miles,  in  a  north-west  direction,  along  the  base  '  a  chain 
of  mountains,  to  its  termination  in  the  sea.  On  his  re.nrn,  he 
examined  the  country  east  of  his  great  river,  which  had  been 
traversed  by  Hearne,  and  arrived  at  Fort  Chipewyan  on  the  12th 
of  September,  after  an  absence  of  nearly  three  months. 

The  mouth  of  the  Mackenzie  was  supposed  by  its  discoverer  to 
be  situated  near  the  69th  degree  of.  latitude,  and  about  25  degrees 
of  longitude,  or  five  hundred  miles,  west  of  the  mouth  of  Hearne's 
Coppermine  River,  which  is  not  far  from  its  t.ue  position.!     Still 


•  Voyages  from  Montreal,  on  the  River  St.  Law»ence,  through  the  Continent  of 
North  America,  to  the  Frozen  and  the  Pacific  Oceans,  in  1789  and  1793,  with  a  pre- 
liminary Account  of  the  Fur  Trade  of  that  Country ;  by  Sir  Alexander  Mackenzie. 
London,  1801. 

t  Its  principal  mouth  is  in  latitude  69",  longitude  13^  west  from  Greenwich. 


if) 


-K. 


'5. 


tKl 


MACKfiNZIK  t(    JOUHNRT   TO   THR    PACIflC. 


[1792. 


farther  west  must,  of  course,  be  situated  any  passage  or  sea  con- 
necting the  Pacific  with  the  part  of  the  ocean  into  which  both  those 
rivers  were  supposed  to  empty ;  and  the  existence  of  any  such 
passage  east  of  Bering's  Strait  became,  in  consequence,  much  less 
probable. 

In  his  second  expedition,  Mackenzie  quitted  Fort  Chipewyan  on 
the  10th  of  October,  1792,  and  ascended  the  Unjigah  or  Peace 
River,  from  the  Athabasca  Lake,  with  much  difficulty,  to  the  foot 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  where  he  spent  the  winter  in  camp.  In 
June  of  the  following  year,  he  resumed  his  voyage  up  the  same 
stream,  which  he  traced,  in  a  south-west  direction,  through  the 
mountains,  to  its  springs,  near  the  54th  degree  of  latitude,  distant 
more  than  nine  hundred  miles  from  its  mouth.  Within  half  a  mile 
of  one  of  these  springs,  he  embarked  on  another  stream,  called  by  the 
natives  Tacoutchee-Teaaee,  down  which  he  floated  in  canoes  about 
two  hundred  and  fifty  miles ;  then,  leaving  the  river,  he  proceeded 
westward  about  two  hundred  miles  over  land,  and,  on  the  22d  of 
July,  1793,  he  reached  the  Pacific  Ocean,  at  the  mouth  of  an  inlet, 
in  the  latitude  of  52  degrees  20  minutes,  which  had,  a  few  weeks 
previous,  been  surveyed  by  Vancouver,  and  been  named  the  Cascade 
Canal.  Having  thus  accomplished  a  passage  across  the  American 
continent  at  its  widest  part,  he  retraced  his  steps  to  Fort  Chipewyan, 
where  he  arrived  on  the  24th  of  August. 

By  this  expedition,  Mackenzie  ascertained  beyond  all  doubt  the 
fact  of  the  extension  of  the  American  continent,  on  the  Pacific 
Ocean,  undivided  by  any  water  passage,  as  far  north  as  the  latitude 
of  52  degrees  20  minutes ;  which  fact  was,  about  the  same  time, 
rendered  nearly,  though  not  absolutely,  certain  by  the  examinations 
of  Vancouver.  The  River  Tacoutchee-Tessee  was  supposed  to  be 
the  upper  part  of  the  Columbia,  until  1812,  when  it  was  traced  to 
its  mouth,  in  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  near  the  49th  degree  of  latitude; 
and  since  that  time  it  has  been  called  Fraser's  River. 

The  discoveries  of  Mackenzie,  taken  in  conjunction  with  the  re- 
sults of  Vane  uver's  surveys,  strengthened  the  conclusion,  at  which 
Cook  had  arrived,  that  the  American  continent  extended  uninter- 
ruptedly north-westward  to  Beiing's  Strait;  and  Mackenzie  him- 
self conceived,  though  certainly  witht  ut  sufficient  grounds,  that  he 
had  clearly  determined  in  the  negative  the  long-agitated  question 
as  to  the  practicability  of  a  voyage  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific, 
around  the  northern  shores  of  America.  For  the  advancement  of 
British  interests  in  the  North  Pacific,  he  recommended  that  the 


or  Boa  con- 
;h  both  those 
of  any  such 
;e,  much  less 

Ihipewyan  on 
^h  or  Peace 
y,  to  the  foot 
in  camp.    In 
up  the  same 
,  through  the 
ititude,  distant 
iiin  half  a  mile 
n,  called  by  the 
1  canoes  about 
r,  he  proceeded 
on  the  22d  of 
uth  of  an  inlet, 
td,  a  few  weeks 
ned  the  Cascade 
IS  the  American 
Fort  Chipewyan, 


1792.] 


JouKNurs  or  rioLER  and  trudeau. 


966 


Hudson's  Bay  and  the  North-West  Companies,  which  had  been 
opposed  ta  each  other  ever  since  the  formation  of  the  latter,  should 
be  united ;  that  the  British  government  should  favor  the  establish- 
ment of  commercial  conununications  across  North  America,  for 
which  the  rivers  and  lakes  in  the  portion  claimed  by  him  for  that 
power  afforded  unrivalled  facilities ;  and  that  the  East  India  Com- 
pany should  throw  open  to  their  fellow-subjects  the  direct  trade 
between  the  north-west  coasts  of  America  and  China,  which  was 
then,  he  says,  "  left  to  the  adventurers  of  the  United  States,  acting 
without  regularity  or  capital,  or  the  desire  of  conciliating  future 
confidence,  and  looking  only  to  the  interest  of  the  moment." 
These  recommendations  were  not  thrown  away,  but  were  nearly  all 
adopted  by  those  to  whom  they  were  addressed ;  and  the  result  has 
been,  the  extension  of  British  commerce  and  dominion  throughout 
the  whole  northern  section  of  America. 

Whilst  Mackenzie  was  engaged  in  his  journey  to  the  Pacific 
coast,  Mr.  Fidler,  a  clerk  in  the  service  of  the  North- West  Company, 
made  an  expedition  from  Fort  Buckingham,  a  trading-post  on  the 
Saskatchawine  River,  south-westward,  to  the  foot  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,'"'  along  which  he  seems  to  have  travelled,  through  the 
regions  drained  by  the  head-waters  of  the  Missouri.  About  the 
tame  time,  several  trading  voyages  were  made  up  the  Missouri  by 
the  French  and  Spaniards  of  St.  Louis ;  particularly  by  the  mem- 
bers of  a  company  formed  at  that  place  by  a  Scotchman  named 
Todd,  under  the  special  protection  of  the  Spanish  government,  the 
object  of  which  was  to  monopolize  the  whole  trade  of  the  interior 
and  western  portions  of  the  continent.f 

The  trade  of  the  citizens  of  the  United  States  with  the  Indians 
in  the  central  portion  of  the  continent  was  much  restricted,  for 
many  years  after  the  establishment  of  the  independence  of  the 
republic,  in  consequence  of  the  possession  of  Louisiana  by  the 
Spaniards,  and  the  retention  by  the  British  of  several  important 
posts  south  of  the  great  lakes,  within  the  territory  acknowledged  as 


*  On  Arrowsmith'a  **Map  of  M  the  new  Diteoveries  in  ffortk  America"  publiihed 
at  London  in  1795,  several  streama  are  repreiented,  on  the  authority  of  Mr.  Fidler, 
as  flowing  from  the  Rocky  Mountains  on  both  sides ;  but  none  corresponding  with 
them  in  course  or  position  have  been  since  found. 

t  The  journal  of  one  of  these  voyages,  made  by  M.  Trudeau,  in  1794,  has  been 
preserved  in  the  archives  of  the  Department  of  State  at  Washington ;  it  is,  however, 
devoted  chiefly  to  the  numbers,  manners,  customs,  religion,  &c.,  of  the  natives  on 
the  banks  of  the  Missouri,  particularly  of  the  Arickaras,  inhabiting  the  country 
under  the  46th  parallel  of  latitude. 

34 


KM 


I 


Wk 

•      .  ■■II:',. 

iH 

''  '-^ 

1       '"  ^'ffi' 

'■  ri  'i-'i  m 

:  iili  1 

■  :,  ■  si"" 

IP 

\ilui 

i 

■■ 

n 


H '. 


lii  il 


966 


AMERICAN    COMMERCE    IN   THE    PACiriC.       [1796 1814. 


belonging  to  the  Union,  by  the  treaty  of  1783.  At  length,  by  the 
treaty  of  November  19,  1794,  between  Great  Britai/i  and  the 
United  States,  it  was  agreed  that  these  posts  should  be  given  up 
to  the  Americans,  and  that  the  people  of  both  nations,  and  the 
Indians  «  dwelling  on  either  side  of  the  boundary  line,  should  have 
liberty  freely  to  pass  and  repaiif,  by  land  or  inland  navigation,  into 
the  respective  territories  of  the  two  parties,  on  the  continent  of 
America,  (the  country  within  the  limits  of  t!  *"  Hudson's  Bay  only 
excepted,)  and  to  navigate  all  the  lakes,  rivers,  nd  waters  thereof, 
and  freely  to  carry  on  trade  with  each  other."  The  surrender  of 
these  posts,  especially  of  Detroit  and  Michilimackinac,  was  very 
inconvenient  to  the  North- West  Company,  whilst  the  trade  of  the 
Americans  with  the  central  regions  was  thereby  increased;  and 
large  quantities  of  furs  were  annually  transported  to  the  Atlantic 
cities,  principally  to  New  York,  from  which  place  they  were  dis- 
tributed throughout  the  United  States,  or  shipped  for  London  or 
Canton. 

On  the  North  Pacific,  the  direct  trade  between  the  American 
coasts  and  China  remained,  from  1796  to  1814,  almobi  entirely,  as 
Mackenzie  said,  in  the  hands  of  the  citizens  of  the  United  States: 
the  British  merchants  were  restrained  from  engaging  in  it  by  the 
opposition  of  their  East  India  Company ;  the  Russians  were  not 
admitted  into  Chinese  ports ;  and  few  ships  of  any  other  nation 
were  seen  in  that  part  of  the  ocean.  That  these  American 
"adventurers  acted  tvithout  regtdarity  or  capital,  or  the  desire  of 
conciliating  Juture  confidence,  and  looking  only  to  the  interest  of  the 
moment,"  was  also,  to  a  certain  extent,  true ;  though  the  facts  can 
scarcely  be  considered  discreditable  to  them,  as  Mackenzie  insinu- 
ated, even  supposing  their  operations  to  have  been  conducted  in 
the  manner  represented  by  a  British  writer,  whose  hostility  to  the 
United  States  and  their  citizens  was  even  more  violent  than  that  of 
Vancouver. 

"These  adventurers,"  says  the  writer  above  mentioned,*  "set 
out  on  the  voyage  with  a  few  trinkets  of  very  little  value.  In  the 
Southern  Pacific,  they  pick  up  some  seal-skins,  and  perhaps  a  few 

butts  of  oil ;  at  the  Gallipagos,  they  lay  in  turtle,  of  which  they 

...  ■-_--.    fii 

*  Review  of  "A  Voyage  around  the  World,  from  1806  to  1812,  by  Archibald 
Campbell,"  in  the  London  Quarterly  Review  for  October,  1816,  written  in  a  spirit  of 
the  moflt  deadly  hatred  towards  the  United  States,  and  filled  with  asaertionB  moit 
impudently falae.  .    ,., 


1796 — 1814.]     AMERICAN  cowraiici:  m  the  PAOirio. 


967 


proiorvo  the  shells ;  at  Valparaiso,  they  raise  a  few  doUan  in  ex- 
change for-  European  articles ;  at  Nootka,  and  other  parti  of  the 
north-west  coasts,  they  traffic  with  the  nativ.  4  for  furs,  which,  when 
winter  commences,  they  carry  to  the  Sandwich  Islands,  to  dry  and 
preserve  from  vermin ;  hero  they  leave  their  own  people  to  take 
euro  of  them,  and,  in  the  spring,  embark,  in  lieu,  the  natives 
of  the  islands,  to  assist  in  navigating  to  the  north-west  coast,  in 
search  of  more  skins.  The  remainder  of  the  cargo  is  then  made 
up  of  sandal,  which  grows  abundantly  in  the  woods  of  Atooi  and 
Owyhee,  of  tortoise  shells,  sharks'  ffns,  and  pearls  of  an  inferior 
kind,  [meaning,  probably,  mother-of-pearl  shells,]  all  of  which  are 
acceptable  in  the  China  market ;  and  with  these  and  their  dollars 
they  purchase  cargoes  of  tea,  silks,  and  nankins,  and  thus  complete 
their  voyage  in  the  course  of  two  or  three  years." 

This  account  appears  to  be,  in  most  respects,  correct,  with  regard 
to  many  of  the  American  vessels  engaged  in  the  Pacific  trade  at  the 
period  to  which  it  relates;  and  it  serves  only  to  prove  the  indus'ry, 
energy,  courage,  and  skill,  of  those  who  embarked  in  such  difficult 
and  perilous  enterprises,  and  conducted  them  so  successfully.  It 
would,  however,  be  easy  to  show,  from  custo.n-house  returns  and 
other  authentic  evidence,  that  the  greater  number  of  the  vessels  sent 
from  the  United  States  to  the  north-west  coasts  were  fine  ships 
or  brigs,  laden  with  valuable  cargoes  of  West  India  productions, 
British  manufactured  articles,  and  French,  Italian,  and  Spanish 
wines  and  spirits ;  and  that  the  owners  were  men  of  large  capital 
and  high  reputation  in  the  commercial  world,  some  of  whom  were 
able  to  compete  with  the  British  companies,  and  even  occasionally 
to  control  their  movements. 

The  American  traders  in  the  Pacific  have  also  been  accused,  by 
British  writers,  of  practising  every  species  of  fraud  and  violence  in 
their  dealings  with  the  natives  of  the  coasts  of  that  sea :  yet  the 
acts  cited  in  support  of  these  general  accusations  are  only  such  as 
have  been,  and  ever  will  be,  committed  by  people  of  civilized 
nations,  —  and  by  none  more  frequently  than  the  British, — when 
unrestrained  by  laws,  in  their  intercourse  with  ignorant,  brutal,  and 
treacherous  savages,  always  ready  to  rob  or  murder  upon  the 
slightest  prospect  of  gain,  or  in  revenge  for  the  slightest  affront. 
Seldom  did  an  American  ship  complete  a  voyage  through  the 
Pacific  without  the  loss  of  some  of  her  men,  by  the  treachery  or 
the  ferocity  of  the  natives  of  the  coasts  which   she  visited ;  and 


''  'ti  ii 


368 


AMERICAN   COMMERCE    IN   THE    PACIFIC.      [1796—1814. 


several  instances  have  occurred  of  the  seizure  of  such  vessels,  and 
the  massacre  of  their  whole  crews,  in  this  manner.'"' 

All  the  islands  in  the  Pacific,  and  every  part  of  the  north-west 
Coasts  of  America,  were  visited  by  the  vessels  of  the  United  States 
in  the  course  of  these  voyages.  Their  principal  places  of  resort 
were  the  Sandwich  Islands,  where  they  obtained  fresh  provisions, 
and  occasionally  seamen  from  among  the  natives ;  and  the  mouth 
of  the  Columbia,  Nootka  Sound,  and  Queen  Charlotte's  Island,  in 
which  they  traded  with  the  Indians  for  furs.  They  occasionally 
touched  at  the  ports  of  California,  where  they  were,  however,  viewed 
with  great  distrust  by  the  Spanish  authorities ;  and  they  generally 
made  the  tour  of  the  Russian  settlements,  which  derived  from  the 
Americans,  in  this  w-^y,  the  greater  part  of  their  supplies  of  European 
manufactures,  ammunition,  sugar,  wines,  and  spirits,  in  exchange  for 
peltries.  The  furs  were,  as  before,  sold  in  Canton,  at  prices  not 
high,  though  sufficient  to  encourage  a  moderate  importation ;  but 
they  seldom  formed  the  whole  cargo  of  the  vessels  arriving  there, 
the  remainder  being  composed  of  sandal-wood,  and  pearl  and  tor- 
toise shells. 

The  Sandwich  Islands  fell  in  succession  under  the  authority  of 
Tamahamaha,  who  displayed  admirable  sagacity  in  his  mode  of 
conducting  the  government,  amid  all  the  dangers  and  difficulties 
arising  from  internal  opposition  and  the  constant  presence  of  stran- 
gers of  various  nations.  Like  the  present  pacha  of  Egypt,  he  was 
not  only  the  political  chief,  but  also  the  chief  merchant  of  his 
territories :  in  his  minor  commercial  operations  he  was  generally 

"  In  1805,  the  ship  Atahualpa,  of  Rhode  Island,  was  attacked  by  tne  savages  in 
Millbank  Sound,  and  her  captain,  mate,  and  six  seamen,  were  killed ;  after  which 
the  other  seamen  succeeded  in  repelling  the  assailants  and  saving  the  vessel.  In 
March,  1803,  the  ship  Boston,  of  Boston,  while  lying  at  Nootka  Sound,  was  attacked 
by  Maquinna  and  his  followers,  who  obtained  possession  of  her,  and  put  to  death  all 
on  board,  with  the  exception  of  two  men,  who,  after  remaining  in  slavery  four 
years,  effected  their  escape.  In  the  same  manner,  the  ship  Tonquin  was,  in  June, 
1811,  seized  by  the  natives,  at  the  entrance  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  and  her  whole  crew 
murdered  in  a  moment,  as  will  be  hereafter  more  particularly  related ;  and  other 
instances  of  a  similar  nature  might  be  cited. 

The  account  of  the  capture  of  the  Boston,  by  John  R.  Jewitt,  the  armorer  of  the 
ship,  contains  many  curious  details  respecting  the  country  around  Nootka  Sound, 
and  ite  inhabitants,  as  observed  by  the  author  during  his  residence  there,  from 
1803  to  1807.  This  little  work  has  been  frequently  reprinted,  and,  though  seldom 
found  in  libraries,  is  much  read  by  boys  and  seamen  in  the  United  States.  It  presents 
the  last  notices  which  have  been  found  on  record  of  Maquinna,  for  whom  Jewitt 
appears  to  have  entertained  a  great  admiration. 


J 


1799.] 


RUSSIAN    AMERICAN    COMPANY   ESTABLISHED. 


S69 


successful ;  but  when  he  ventured  to  extend  the  scale  of  his  specu- 
lations, by  sending  vessels  laden  with  sandal-wood  to  Canton,  he 
was,  as  he  asserted,  always  cheated  by  those  to  whom  he  committed 
the  management  of  the  business.  *  ^ 

In  California,  the  Franciscan  missionaries  were  proceeding 
steadily  in  their  course,  and  the  number  of  their  converts  was 
daily  increasing.  The  government  appears  to  have  been  liberal  in 
the  appropriation  of  funds  for  their  use ;  but,  in  Spanish  America,  a 
long  time  always  elapsed  between  the  issue  of  an  order  for  supplies 
and  their  delivery,  and  a  large  proportion  of  the  amount  originally 
ordered  was  generally  subtracted  before  it  reached  those  for  whose 
use  it  was  designed.  Soldiers,  whose  terms  had  expired,  were  also, 
in  some  cases,  allowed  to  remain  in  the  country ;  and  the  com- 
mandants permitted  a  little  contraband  trade  with  the  Americans, 
who  introduced  manufactured  articles  in  return  for  hides. 

In  the  mean  time,  the  Russians  of  Northern  Asia,  though  ex- 
cluded from  the  ports  of  China,  continued  their  commerce  with 
that  empire,  as  also  with  Europe,  as  formerly,  by  means  of  caravans 
passing  over  land ;  the  communications  being  conducted  principally 
by  a  company  established  at  Irkutsk,  the  great  mart  of  that  part  of 
the  world.  The  fur  trade  of  the  northernmost  coasts  of  the  Pacific 
was  monopolized  by  the  association,  formed  in  1781,  under  the 
direction  of  Schelikof  and  GoUikof,  which  was  protected  by  the 
empress  Catharine,  and  endowed  with  many  important  privileges. 
After  the  death  of  Catharine,  in  1794,  her  son  and  successor,  Paul, 
at  first  determined  to  put  an  end  to  the  association,  on  account  of 
the  alleged  cruelty  of  its  agents  towards  the  natives  of  the  American 
coasts :  he  was,  however,  induced  to  change  his  resolution  ;  and,  a 
union  having  been  effected,  in  1798,  between  the  two  companies 
above  mentioned,  a  decree  was  issued,  on  the  8th  of  July  of  the 
following  year,  conceding  to  them,  under  the  title  of  the  Russian 
American  Company,  the  entire  use  and  control,  for  twenty  years,  of 
all  the  coasts  of  America  on  the  Pacific,  from  the  55th  degree  of 
north  latitude  to  Bering's  Strait,  together  with  the  adjacent  islands, 
including  the  Kurile  and  the  Aleutian  groups,  all  of  which  were 
claimed  as  having  been  discovered  by  Russians.  The  company 
was  also  authorised  to  explore,  and  bring  under  subjection  to  the 
imperial  crown,  any  other  territories  in  America  not  previously 
attached  to  the  dominions  of  some  civilized  nation ;  with  the 
express  provision  that  the  natives  of  all  these  countries  should 
be  treated  with  kindness,  and,  if  possible,  be   converted  to  the 


Fl 


'  ',   1  i 


§ 


m 

m 

i 

1 

■m 
111 


III 


270 


RUSSIAN   ESTABLISHSIENTS    IN   AMERICA. 


[1806. 


Greek  Catholic  faith.  These  privileges  were  confirmed  and  in- 
creased by  the  emperor  Alexander,  whose  chief  minister  of  state, 
Count  RomanzoiT,  was  a  zealous  promoter  of  all  that  could  tend  to 
advance  the  power  and  interests  of  Russia  in  the  Pacific ;  and  the 
company  still  enjoys  the  favor  of  the  government,  its  charter  having 
been  renewed  by  successive  decrees  in  1821  and  1839. 

Under  these  advantageous  circumstances,  combined  with  great 
skill  and  energy  in  the  management  of  its  afiairs,  and  aided  by  the 
constant  increase  of  facilities  for  communication  throughout  the 
empire,  the  Russian  American  Company  prospered ;  and  its  estab- 
lishments soon  extended  over  the  whole  of  the  Aleutian  Archipelago, 
and  thence  eastward  along  the  coast  and  islands  of  the  American 
continent,  to  the  distance  of  more  than  a  thousand  miles.  In  1803, 
the  most  eastern  of  these  establishments  was  on  Norfolk  Sound,  the 
Port  Guadelupe  of  the  Spaniards,  near  the  56th  degree  of  latitude, 
at  the  southern  entrance  of  the  passage  which  separates  Mount 
San  Jacinto  or  Edgecumb  from  the  lai^est  island  of  King  George 
III.'s  Archipelago.  This  settlement,  founded  in  1799,  was  de- 
stroyed, in  1803,  by  the  natives  of  the  country,  with  the  assistance, 
as  it  is  said,  of  some  seamen  who  had  deserted  from  an  American 
vessel ;  but  another  was  formed  there  in  1805,  which  received  the 
name  of  New  Archangel  of  Sitca,  and  has  ever  since  been  the 
capital  of  Russian  America.  The  other  principal  establishments 
of  the  company  were  in  Unalashka  and  Kodiak,  and  on  the  shores 
of  Cook's  Inlet,  Prince  William's  Sound,  and  Admiralty  or  Bering's 
Bay.  In  1806,  preparations  were  made  for  occupying  the  mouth 
of  the  Columbia  River ;  but  the  plan  was  abandoned,  although  that 
spot,  and  the  whole  region  north  of  it,  was  then,  and  for  some  time 
after  continued  to  be,  represented,  on  the  maps  published  by  the 
company,  as  within  the  limits  of  its  rightful  possessions. 

The  population  of  each  of  these  establishments  consisted  princi- 
pally of  natives  of  America,  brought  by  the  Russians  from  other  and 
distant  parts  of  the  coast ;  between  whom  and  the  people  of  the 
surrounding  country  there  were  no  ties  of  kindred  or  language, 
and  there  could  be  little  community  of  feelings  or  interests.  The 
Aleutian  Islands  and  Kodiak  furnished  the  greater  number  of  these 
forced  emigrants,  and  also  a  large  proportion  of  the  crews  of  the 
vessels  employed  in  the  service  of  the  company.  The  Russians 
were  enlisted  in  Kamtchatka  and  Siberia,  for  a  term  of  years: 
they  entered  as  PromtischkniJcs,  or  adventurers,  and  were  employed, 
according  to  the  will  of  their  superiors,  as  soldiers,  sailors,  hunters, 


1806.] 


GOVERNMENT    OF    RUSSIAN    AMERICA. 


271 


fishermen,  or  .chanics ;  in  the  best  of  which  situations  their  lot 
was  more  \v  .  :;hed  than  that  of  any  other  class  of  human  beings 
within  the  pa!e  of  civilization,  or,  indeed,  of  any  other  class  of  per- 
sons whatsoever,  except  the  natives  of  the  American  coasts,  whom 
they  assisted  in  keeping  under  subjection.  Under  such  circum- 
stances, it  will  be  easily  believed  that  "none  but  vagabonds  and 
adventurers  ever  entered  the  company's  service  as  Promuschleniks ; " 
that  "  it  was  their  invariable  destiny  to  pass  a  life  of  wretchedness 
in  America; "  that  "  fe./  had  the  good  fortune  ever  to  touch  Rus- 
sian ground  again,  and  very  few  to  attain  the  object  of  their  wishes 
by  returning  to  Europe."  * 

The  government  of  Russian  America  was  arranged  on  a  plan 
even  more  despotic  than  that  of  the  other  parts  of  the  empire. 
The  general  superintendence  of  the  affairs  of  the  company  was  in 
the  hands  of  a  Directory,  residing  at  St.  Petersburg,  by  which  all 
the  regulations  and  appointments  were  made,  and  all  questions 
were  decided,  with  the  approval,  however,  of  the  imperial  depart- 
ment of  commerce.  All  the  territories  belonging  to  the  company, 
and  all  persons  and  things  in  them,  were  placed  under  the  control 
of  a  chief  agent  or  governor,  residing  at  Kodiak  or  Sitca,  from 
whose  orders  there  was  no  appeal,  except  to  the  Directory :  in  like 
manner,  each  district  or  group  of  settlements  was  ruled  by  an 
inferior  agent,  accountable  directly  to  the  governor-general;  and 
each  factory  or  settlement  was  commanded  by  an  overseer,  chosen 
from  among  the  Promuschleniks,  who  possessed  the  right  to  pun- 
ish, to  a  certain  extent,  those  within  the  circle  of  his  authority. 

The  regulations  for  the  government  of  these  territories  were, 
like  those  of  the  Spanish  Council  of  the  Indies,  generally  just  and 
humane ;  but  the  enforcement  of  them,  as  in  Spanish  America,  was 
intrusted,  for  some  time,  to  men  with  whom  justice  and  humanity 
were  subordinate  to  expediency.  The  first  chief  agent  was  Alex- 
ander Baranof,  who  had  accompanied  Schelikof  in  his  expedition  in 
1783,  and  was  the  superintendent  of  the  settlements  at  Kodiak  and 
Cook's  Inlet  when  Vancouver  visited  those  places  in  1794.  He  was 
a  shrewd,  bold,  enterprising,  and  unfeeling  man,  of  iron  frame  and 
nerves,  and  the  coarsest  habits  and  manners.  By  his  inflexible 
severity  and  energy,  he  seems  to  have  maintained  absolute  and  in- 
dependent sway  over  all  the  Russian  American  coasts  for  more  than 
twenty  years ;  showing  little  respect  to  the  orders  of  the  Directory, 


*  Knuenstem'B  Account  of  his  Voyage  to  the  North  Facific. 


272 


QOVERNMENT   OF    RUSSIAN    AMERICA. 


[1806. 


and  even  to  those  of  the  emperor,  when  they  were  at  variance  with 
his  own  views.  He  was,  however,  devoted  to  the  interests  of  the 
company,  and,  its  affairs  being  most  profitably  managed  under  his 
direction,  he  was  allowed  to  follow  his  own  course,  and  the  com- 
plaints against  him  which  reached  the  Directory  were  unheeded. 
These  complaints  were,  it  is  true,  not  frequent ;  for  the  Directory 
and  the  imperial  throne  at  St.  Petersburg  were  almost  as  completely 
inaccessible  to  the  subjects  and  servants  of  the  company  residing  in 
America,  as  they  would  have  been  in  another  planet.  Among  the  in- 
ferior agents  were  men  of  higher  and  better  character  than  their  chief; 
but  they  were  forced  to  bend  under  his  authority,  and  their  efforts 
to  introduce  improvements  were  vain,  if  they  in  any  degree  conflicted 
with  his  views  as  to  the  immediate  interests  of  the  company. 

Of  the  furs  which  formed  the  whole  returns  from  these  territories, 
some  were  transported  in  the  company's  vessels  to  Fetropawlowsk 
and  Ochotsk,  whence  were  brought  back  the  greater  part  of  the 
supplies  of  provisions  for  the  use  of  the  establishments;  the  re- 
mainder of  the  furs  being  exchanged  for  arms,  ammunition,  spirits, 
wine,  tobacco,  sugar,  and  European  manufactures,  furnished  by  the 
trading  ships  of  the  United  States,  of  which  a  large  number  were 
then  constantly  employed  in  the  North  Pacific.  The  presence  of 
these  American  vessels  was  by  no  means  agreeable  to  the  Russians, 
who  would  willingly  have  excluded  them  from  that  part  of  the 
ocean,  not  unly  for  the  purpose  of  monopolizing  the  fur  trade,  but 
also  in  order  to  prevent  the  natives  of  the  coasts  from  obtaining 
arms  and  ammunition  from  the  Americans,  as  they  frequently  did, 
to  the  detriment  of  the  authority  and  interests  of  the  company. 
This,  however,  could  not  have  been  effected  without  maintaining  a 
large  naval  force  in  the  North  Pacific;  nor  could  the  settlements 
have  been  extended  or  supported  without  the  supplies  furnished  by 
the  Americans,  unless  a  direct  intercourse  were  estabUshed  by  sea 
with  Europe,  China,  or  Japan. 

With  the  view  of  inquiring  what  measures  would  be  most  effect- 
ual for  the  advancement  of  the  interests  of  the  Russian  American 
Company  in  these  and  other  respects,  it  was  determined  at  St. 
Petersburg,  in  1803,  that  an  expedition,  scientific  and  political, 
should  be  made  through  the  North  Pacific.  Two  ships,  the  I^a- 
deshda,  commanded  by  Captain  Krusenstern,  and  the  Neva,  by 
Captain  Lisiansky,  were  accordingly  despatched  from  Cronstadt, 
in  August  of  that  year,  under  the  direction  of  Krusenstern,  carry- 
ing out  a  large  body  of  officers  and  men,  distinguished  in  various 


■I     ) 


I)  S,  .  ,.1' 


1806.] 


rOTAOE   or    KRDSERSTKSN. 


273 


branches  of  science,  together  ii^ith  the  chamberlain,  Von  Resanoff, 
who  was  commissioned  as  ambassadot  to  Japan,  and  as  plenipoten- 
tiary of  the  Russian  American  Directory. 

The  two  ships  passed  together  around  Cape  Horn,  touched  at  the 
Washington  and  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and  then  separated;  the 
Neva  going  to  the  north-west  coasts  of  America,  and  the  Nadeshda 
to  Petropawlowsk,  where  she  arrived  in  the  middle  of  July,  1804. 
From  Kamtchatka,  Krusenstern  proceeded,  with  the  ambassador,  to 
Nangasaki,  the  capital  of  Japan,  at  which  place  their  arrival  only 
served  to  excite  suspicions :  they  were  not  allowed  to  land,  except 
for  the  purpose  of  taking  exercise  in  a  confined  space;  the  letter 
and  presents  of  the  Russian  emperor  were  rejected ;  and  the  am- 
bassador was  distinctly  informed  that  no  vessels  belonging  to  his 
nation  would,  in  future,  be  permitted  to  enter  a  Japanese  port. 
After  this  rebuff,  the  Nadeshda  returned  to  Kamtchatka,  and  Kru- 
senstern passed  several  months  in  examining  the  coasts  of  Tartary 
and  the  adjacent  islands  between  that  peninsula  and  Japan  ;  these 
labors  being  completed,  he  went  to  Canton,  where  she  arrived  in  the 
end  of  November,  1805. 

Lisiansky,  in  the  Neva,  had,  in  the  mean  time,  visited  Sitca, 
Kodiak,  and  other  Russian  establishments,  on  the  north-west  coasts 
of  America,  at  which  his  presence  was  advantageous  to  the  interests 
of  the  company,  by  controlling  the  hostile  dispositions  of  the  natives ; 
and  having  performed  all  that  could  be  done  by  him  in  that  quar- 
ter, he  proceeded  to  Canton,  with  a  cargo  of  furs,  and  there  rejoined 
Krusenstern,  in  December,  1805.  The  Chinese  were  found  equally 
as  determined  as  the  Japanese  to  allow  no  commerce  by  sea  with 
the  Russians;  and  many  difRculties  were  experienced  before  the 
furs  brought  by  the  Neva  could  be  landed  for  sale.  This  business 
being  at  length  despatched,  the  two  vessels  took  their  departure, 
and,  sailing  around  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  reached  Cronstadt  in 
August,  1806,  having  carried  the  Russian  flag  for  the  first  time 
across  the  equator  and  around  the  world. 

In  the  mean  time,  also.  Von  Resanoff, — a  singularly  ridiculous 
and  incompetent  person, — after  the  failure  of  his  embassy  to  Japan, 
had  gone,  as  plenipotentiary  of  the  Russian  American  Company,  to 
Sitca,  where  he  passed  the  winter  of  1805-1806,  engaged  in  devis- 
ing plans  for  the  conduct  of  the  company's  affairs,  all  of  which  were 
quietly  set  aside  by  the  chief  agent,  Baranof.  The  propriety  of 
expelling  the  Americans  from  the  North  Pacific  was  at  the  same 
time  rendered  questionable,  by  the  fact  that  the  garrison  and  set- 
35 


V 


■m 


Ifli! 


i 


Wi 


S74 


VOTAOE   OF   KRUSENSTBRir. 


[1808. 


tiers  at  this  place  would  have  all  perished  from  famine,  had  they 
not  fortunately  been  supplied  with  provisions  by  the  ship  Juno,  from 
Rhode  Island.  This  ship  was  purchased  for  the  use  of  the  company, 
and  Von  ResanofT,  embarking  in  her,  sailed  along  the  coast  to  Cal- 
ifornia, endeavoring,  in  his  way,  but  without  success,  to  enter  the 
mouth  of  the  Columbia,  where  he  proposed  to  form  a  settlement ; 
and  having  spent  some  time  in  trifling  at  San  Francisco,  he  returned 
to  Kamtchatka,  on  his  way  from  which  to  Europe  he  died. 

Though  not  one  of  the  commercial  or  political  objects  proposed 
by  this  expedition  was  attained,  it  was,  nevertheless,  productive  of 
great  advantages,  not  only  to  the  Russians,  but  to  the  cause  of  hu- 
manity and  of  science  in  general ;  particularly  by  the  rectification 
of  numerous  errors  in  the  charts  of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  by  the 
exposure  of  the  abuses  in  the  administration  of  the  Russian  Amer- 
ican Company's  dominions,  which  led  to  the  immediate  removal  of 
many  of  them.  No  one  could  have  been  better  qualified  for  the 
direction  of  such  an  expedition  than  Krusenstern,  whose  narrative 
is  equally  honorable  to  him  as  a  commander,  as  a  man  of  science, 
and  as  a  philanthropist.  Those  who  wish  to  learn  at  what  cost  of 
human  life  and  suffering  the  furs  of  the  North  Pacific  coasts  are  pro- 
cured, will  find  ample  information  on  the  subject  in  his  pages ;  while, 
at  the  same  time,  he  presents  instances  of  fortitude,  perseverance, 
and  good  feeling,  on  the  part  of  his  countrymen,  calculated  to  coun- 
teract, in  a  great  measure,  the  unfavorable  impressions,  with  regard 
to  them,  which  his  other  details  might  have  produced.'"' 

In  1808,  soon  after  the  return  of  Krusenstern's  ships  to  Europe, 
diplomatic  relations  were  established  between  Russia  and  the  United 
States ;  and  in  the  following  year,  a  representation  was  addressed 
by  the  court  of  St.  Petersburg  to  the  government  of  the  Union, 
on  the  subject  of  the  illicit  trade  of  American  citizens  with  the 
natives  of  the  North  Pacific  coasts,  by  means  of  which  those  savages 
were  supplied  with  arms  and  ammunition,  to  the  prejudice  of  the 
authority  and  interests  of  the  emperor  and  his  people  in  that  portion 

*  Accounts  of  this  expedition  have  been  published  by  Krusenstern,  bj  Lisiansky, 
and  by  Langsdorf,  the  surgeon  of  the  Nadeshda,  all  of  which  have  been  translated 
into  £nglish  and  other  European  languages. 

Krusenstern  was,  soon  after  his  return  to  Russia,  raised  to  the  rank  of  admiral.  He 
■till  lives  at  St.  Petersburg,  honored  by  his  government,  and  esteemed  by  all  who 
know  him.  His  communications  frequently  appear  in  the  reports  of  the  proceedings 
of  various  scientific  societies  in  Europe;  they  are  chiefly  respecting  the  hydrography 
of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  to  which  subject  his  labors  have  been  long  and  assiduouely 
devoted,  with  results  important  and  beneficial  to  the  whole  world. 


! 


1810.]       PROPOSITIONS    or    RUSSIA   TO   THE    UNITED    STATES.  275 

of  his  dominions.  A  desire  was  at  the  same  time  expressed,  that 
gome  act  should  be  passed  by  Congress,  or  some  convention  be 
concluded  between  the  two  nations,  which  might  have  the  effect  of 
preventing  the  continuance  of  such  irregularities.  No  disposition 
being  shown  by  the  American  government  to  adopt  any  of  those 
measures.  Count  Romanzoff,  the  minister  of  foreign  affairs  at  St. 
Petersburg,  proposed  to  Mr.  John  Quincy  Adams,  the  plenipoten- 
tiary of  the  United  States  at  that  court,  an  arrangement,  by  which 
the  vessels  of  the  Union  should  supply  the  Russian  settlements  on 
the  Pacific  with  provisions  and  manufactures,  and  should  transport 
the  furs  of  the  company  to  Canton,  under  the  restriction  of  their 
abstaining  from  all  intercourse  with  the  natives  of  the  north-west 
coasts  of  America.  Mr.  Adams,  in  his  answer,  showed  several 
reasons  for  which  his  government  could  not,  with  propriety,  accede 
to  this  proposition ;  and  he  moreover  desired  to  know  loithin  what 
limits  it  was  expected  that  the  restriction  should  be  observed.  This 
question  was,  doubtless,  embarrassing  to  the  Russian  minister,  who, 
however,  after  some  time,  replied,  that  the  Russian  American  Com- 
pany claimed  the  whole  coast  of  America  on  the  Fadfic  and  the 
adjacent  islands,  from  Bering's  Strait,  southward  to  and  beyond 
the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  River ;  whereupon  the  correspondence 
was  immediately  terminated. 

There  was,  certainly,  no  disposition,  on  the  part  of  the  United 
States,  to  encourage  their  citizens  in  the  trade  which  formed  the 
subject  of  the  complaints  of  the  Russians,  or  to  offend  that  power 
by  refusing  to  cooperate  in  suppressing  such  a  trade.  But  the 
American  government  properly  considered  that  no  means  existed 
for  enforcing  the  restrictions,  with  justice  and  regularity,  even  on 
the  coasts  which  might  be  admitted  to  belong  to  Russia ;  while,  at 
the  same  time,  the  right  of  that  nation  to  the  possession  of  the 
coasts  so  far  south  as  the  Columbia,  could  not  be  recognized,  for 
reasons  which  will  be  made  apparent  in  the  ensuing  chapter. 


876 


\ 


!^iiV'..    t:         if. 


hi  imm 


m^ 


CHAPTER   XIII. 


1803  TO  1806. 


.  I J ; 


It  I 


i^ 


Ccsaion  of  Louiaiana  by  France  to  the  TTr.ited  States  —  Inquiries  aa  to  the  true  Extent 
of  Louiaiana — Erroneous  Suppoaition  that  its  Limita  towards  the  North  had  been 
fixed  by  Comrni^aaries  agreeably  to  the  Treaty  of  Utrecht  —  President  Jefferson 
aenda  Lewiaand  Clarke  to  examine  the  Miaaouri  and  Columbia  —  Account  of  their 
Expedition  from  the  Miaaiaaippi  to  the  Pacific. 

Tee  discovery,  or  rediscovery,  of  the  Columbia  River,  by  Gray, 
remained  almost  entirely  unknown,  until  it  was  communicated  to  the 
world  by  the  publication  of  the  narrative  of  Vancouver's  expedition, 
in  1798 ;  at  which  time,  and  for  several  years  afterwards,  no  one 
imagined  that  any  thing  connected  with  that  river  would  ever  be- 
come particularly  interesting  to  the  people  or  government  of  the 
United  States  of  America.  V 

The  territories  of  the  United  States  were,  at  that  time,  all  in- 
cluded between  the  Atlantic  Ocean  on  the  east  and  the  Mississippi 
River  on  the  west.  In  the  north  were  the  British  provinces ;  in  the 
south  lay  Florida,  belonging  to  Spain ;  and  beyond  the  Mississippi, 
the  Spaniards  also  claimed  the  vast  region  called  Louisiana,  stretch- 
ing from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  northward  and  north-westward  to  an 
undefined  extent.  Thus  all  communication  between  the  States  of 
the  Federal  Union  and  the  Pacific  was  completely  cut  off,  by  the  in- 
terposition of  countries  possessed  by  foreign  and  unfriendly  nations. 

The  position  of  the  United  States,  and  of  their  government  and 
people,  with  regard  to  the  north-western  portion  of  the  continent, 
was,  however,  entirely  changed  after  the  30th  of  April,  1803,  when 
Louisiana,  which  had  been  ceded  by  Spain  to  France  in  1800,  came 
into  their  possession,  by  purchase  from  the  latter  power.  From  that 
moment,  the  route  across  the  continent  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pa- 
cific lay  open  to  the  Americans ;  and  nothing  could  be  anticipated 
capable  of  arresting  their  progress  in  the  occupation  of  the  whole 
territory  included  between  those  seas. 

Before  relating  the  measures  taken  by  the  government  of  the 
United  States  in  consequence  of  the  acquisition  of  Louisiana,  it  will 


1712.] 


GRANT   OF    LOUISIANA   TO   CROZAT. 


81T 


be  convenient  to  present  some  observations  respecting  the  northern 
and  western  limits  of  that  portion  of  America. 

The  first  discovery  of  the  southern  part  of  the  Mississippi  and  the 
adjacent  countries,  by  the  Spaniards,  in  the  sixteenth  century,  hai 
been  already  mentioned.  The  northern  branches  of  that  river  were 
explored  in  the  latter  years  of  the  seventeenth  century,  by  the  French, 
from  Canada ;  *  and  before  1710,  many  French  colonies  and  posts  had 
been  established  on  its  banks,  in  virtue  of  which.  King  Louis  XIV. 
claimed  possession  of  all  the  territories  to  a  great  distance  on  either 
side  of  the  stream.  In  1712,  the  exclusive  trade  of  the  southern 
division  of  these  territories,  then  called  Louisiana,  was  granted  by 
King  Louis  to  Antoine  Crozat,  in  a  royal  decree  or  charter,  bearing 
date  the  17th  of  September,  which  contains  the  earliest  exposition  of 
the  limits  of  that  region.  The  words  of  the  decree  are  as  follows :  f 
"Nous  avons  par  cej  pr^sentes,  sign^es  de  notre  main,  ^tabli  et 
etablissons  ledit  Sieur  Crozat,  pour  faire  seul,  le  commerce  dans 
toutes  Ics  terres  par  Nous  possed(^es,  et  bornees  par  le  Nouveau  Mex- 
ique,  et  par  celles  des  Anglais  de  la  Caroline,  tous  les  ^tablissemens, 
ports,  havres,  rivieres,  et  principalement  le  port  et  havre  de  I'isle 
Dauphine,  appellee  autrefois  dc  Massacre,  le  fleuve  St.  Louis,  au- 
trefois appellee  Mississippy,  depuis  le  bord  de  la  mer  jusqu'aux  Illinois, 
ensemble  les  rivieres  St.  Philippe,  autrefois  appellee  des  Missourys, 
et  St.  Hierosme,  autrefois  appellee  Ouabache,  avec  tous  les  pays, 
contrees,  lacs  dans  les  terres,  et  les  rivieres  qui  tombent  directement 
ou  indirectement  dans  cette  partie  du  fleuve  St.  Louis.    Youlons 


*  JeSireys — or  whoever  wrote  the  history  of  the  French  dominions  in  America,  pub- 
lished under  the  name  of  Jeffreys,  in  175!)  —  says,  at  p.  134  of  that  work,  "  The  Mis- 
sissippi, the  chief  of  all  the  rivers  of  Louisiana,  which  it  divides  almost  into  two  equal 
parts,  was  discovered  by  Colonel  Wood,  who  spent  almost  ten  years,  or  from  1654  to 
1664,  in  searching  its  course,  as  also  by  Captain  Bolt,  in  1670." 

t  ■'  We  have,  by  these  presents,  signed  with  our  hand,  authorized,  and  do  authorize, 
the  said  Sieur  Crozat,  to  carry  on  exclusively  the  trade  in  all  the  territories  by  us  pos- 
sessed, and  bounded  by  New  Mexico  and  by  those  of  the  English  in  Carolina,  all  the 
establishments,  ports,  harbors,  rivers,  and  especially  the  port  and  harbor  of  Dauphin 
Island,  formerly  called  Massacre  Island,  the  River  St.  Louis,  formerly  called  the  Mis- 
sissippi, from  the  sea-shore  to  the  Illinois,  together  with  the  Rivers  St.  Philip,  formerly 
called  the  Missouries  River,  and  the  St.  Jerome,  formerly  called  the  Wabash,  [the 
Ohio,]  with  all  the  countries,  territories,  lakes  in  the  land,  and  the  rivers  emptying 
directly  or  indirectly  into  that  part  of  the  River  St.  Louis.  All  the  said  territories, 
countries,  rivers,  streams,  and  islands,  we  will  to  be  and  remain  comprised  under  the 
name  of  the  government  of  Louisiana,  which  shall  be  dependent  on  the  general  gov- 
ernment of  New  France,  and  remain  subordinate  to  it ;  and  we  will,  moreover,  that 
all  the  territories  which  we  possess  on  this  side  of  the  Illinois,  be  united,  as  far  as  need 
be,  to  the  general  government  of  New  France,  and  form  a  part  thereof;  reserving  to 
ourself,  nevertheless,  to  increase,  if  we  judge  proper,  the  extent  of  the  government 
of  the  said  country  of  Louisiana." 


378 


LOUISIANA    CEDED    BY   FRANCE    TO    SPAIN. 


(1762. 


que  lea  dites  terres,  contr6e8,  fleuves,  rivieres  et  isles,  sment  et  de- 
meurent  compris  sous  le  nom  du  gouvernement  de  la  Louisiane,  qui 
sera  dependant  du  gouvernement  g^n^ral  de  la  Nouvelle  France, 
auquel  il  demeurera  subordonn^ ;  et  voulons  en  outre,  que  toutes 
les  terres  que  nous  poss^dons,  depuis  les  Illinois,  soient  reunies,  en 
tant  que  besoin  est,  au  gouvernement  g^n^ral  de  la  Nouvelle  France, 
et  en  fassent  partie ;  Nous  reservant  n^anmoins  d'augmenter,  si 
nous  le  jugeons  k  propos,  T^tendue  du  gouvernement  du  dit  pays 
de  la  Louisiane." 

This  description  of  the  extent  of  Louisiana  was  sufficiently  defi- 
nite for  the  immediate  purposes  of  the  concession :  as  the  trade  and 
settlement  of  the  country  would  necessarily  be,  for  a  long  time,  con- 
fined to  the  vicinity  of  the  great  rivers,  the  precise  determination  of 
its  boundaries  on  the  east  and  the  west  might  well  be  deferred  for 
future  arrangement  with  Great  Britain  and  Spain.  Crozat  relin- 
quished his  privilege  in  1717 ;  the  Illinois  country  was  then  annexed 
to  Louisiana,  by  a  royal  decree,  and  the  whole  region  was  granted 
to  the  Compagnie  d^  Orient,  better  known  as  Law^s  Miasisaippi  Com- 
pany, which  held  it  until  1732 :  in  that  year  it  reverted  to  the 
French  crown,  and  was  governed  as  a  French  province  until  1769. 
On  the  3d  of  November,  1762,  the  preliminaries  of  peace  were 
signed  at  Paris,  between  France  and  Spain  on  the  one  part,  and 
England  and  Portugal  on  the  other ;  and  on  the  same  day,  "  the 
most  Christian  king  authorized  his  minister,  the  duke  de  Choiseul, 
to  deliver  to  the  marquis  di  Grimaldi,  the  ambassador  of  the  Catholic 
king,  in  the  most  authentic  form,  an  act,  whereby  his  most  Christian 
majesty  cedes,  in  entire  possession,  purely  and  simply,  without  ex- 
ception, to  his  Catholic  majesty,  and  his  successors  in  perpetuity,  all 
the  country  known  under  the  name  of  Louisiana,  as  also  New  Or- 
leans and  the  island  in  which  that  city  is  situated."  The  cession 
accordingly  took  place  in  form,  on  the  23d  of  the  same  month,  io 
precisely  the  same  terms  as  to  the  extent  of  the  territory  ceded ;  * 
and  on  the  10th  of  February  following,  a  treaty  was  concluded  at 
Paris,  between  France  and  Spain  on  the  one  part,  and  Great  Britain 
and  Portugal  on  the  other,  by  which  Great  Britain  obtained  posses- 
sion of  Canada,  Florida,  and  the  portion  of  Louisiana  "  east  of  a 
line,  drawn  along  the  middle  of  the  Mississippi,  from  its  source  to 

*  The  documents  relating  to  this  cession  were  kept  secret  until  1836,  when  copies 
of  them  were  obtained  from  the  archives  of  the  Department  of  Foreign  Affairs  at  Mad- 
rid, by  the  late  J.  M.  White,  of  Florida ;  from  which  translations  were  made  by  the 
author  of  this  History,  and  published  by  the  Senate  of  the  United  StatM,  in  1837. 


[1162. 

ient  et  de- 
lifliane,  qui 
lie  France, 
que  toutes 
reunicB,  en 
elle  France, 
tgmenter,  si 
du  dit  pays 

iciently  defi- 
he  trade  and 
[ig  time,  con- 
jrmination  of 
B  deferred  for 
Crozat  relin- 
then  annexed 
n  was  granted 
ssissippi  Com' 
jverted  to  the 
ce  until  1769. 
af  peace  were 
one  part,  and 
imeday,  "the 
.e  de  Choiseul, 
[of  the  Catholic 
most  Christian 
ly,  without  ex- 
perpetuity,  all 
also  New  Or- 
The  cession 
_ie  month,  in 
ritory  ceded;* 
^s  concluded  at 
_  Great  Britain 
|btained  posses- 
tna  "  east  of  a 
its  source  to 

1836,  when  copies 
Lign  Affairs  at  Mad- 
Iwere  made  by  the 

1  Statw,  in  1837. 


1803.]     LOUISIANA  CEDED  TO  rRANOE,  AND  TO  THE  V.  STATES.      279 

the  River  Iberville,  and  thence  along  the  middle  of  the  Iberville, 
and  the  Lakes  Maurcpas  and  Pontchartrain,  to  the  sea." 

By  these  treaties,  the  eastern  boundary  of  Louisiana  was  dcfini* 
tively  fixed,  from  the  Mexican  Gulf  to  the  head  of  the  Missis- 
sippi ;  and  Great  Britain,  at  the  same  time,  formally  renounced  all 
her  claims  to  the  territories  west  of  that  river.  With  regard  to 
the  western  limits  of  Louisiana,  no  settlement  of  boundaries  was 
necessary ;  as  the  territory  thus  acquired  by  Spain  would  join 
other   territories,  of  which  she  also  claimed  possession. 

The  transfer  of  Louisiana  by  France  to  Spain  was  not  officially 
promulgated  until  1765 ;  nor  did  the  Spaniards  obtain  possession 
of  the  country  until  1769,  from  which  period  they  occupied  it 
continually,  until  the  30th  of  November,  1803.  In  the  mean 
time,  Louisiana  twice  changed  its  masters.  On  the  Ist  of 
October,  1800,  a  treaty  was  concluded  between  the  French  re- 
public and  the  king  of  Spain,  by  which  the  former  party  en- 
gaged to  enlarge  the  dominions  of  the  duke  of  Parma,  a  prince 
of  the  royal  family  of  Spain,  by  adding  to  them  some  other 
territories  in  Italy ;  and  his  Catholic  majesty,  by  the  third  article, 
"engaged,  on  his  part,  to  retrocede  to  the  French  republic,  six 
months  after  the  full  and  entire  execution  of  the  above-mentioned 
conditions  and  stipulations  relative  to  the  duke  of  Parma,  the 
colony  or  province  of  Louisiana,  with  the  same  extent  which  it 
now  has  in  the  hands  of  Spain,  and  which  it  had  when  France 
possessed  it,  and  such  as  it  should  be,  according  to  the  treaties 
tuhsequently  made  between  Spain  and  other  states."  *  The  conditions 
relative  to  the  duke  of  Parma  having  been  fulfilled  by  France, 
Louisiana  became  the  property  of  that  republic;  between  which 
and  the  United  States  of  America  a  treaty  was  concluded,  on 
the  30th  of  April,  1803,  wherein,  after  reciting  the  third  article 
of  the  treaty  of  1800,  the  territory  thus  retroceded  to  France 
was  ^^  ceded  to  the  United  States,  in  the  name  of  the  French 
republic,  forever,  and  in  full  sovereignty,  with  all  its  rights  and 
appurtenances,  as  fully,  and  in  the  sam^  manner,  as  they  have  been 
acquired  by  the  French  republic,  in  virtue  of  the  above-mentioned 
treaty  with  his   Catholic  majesty." 

*  The  treaty  of  October  1st,  1800,  was  never  made  public  until  1820,  when 
it  appeared,  for  the  first  time,  in  the  French  and  the  Spanish  languages,  in  the 
Memoir  published  at  Madrid  by  the  Chevalier  de  Onis,  formerly  minister  plenipo- 
tentiary of  Spain  in  the  United  States,  in  defence  of  his  conduct,  in  concluding 
the  treaty  by  which  Florida  became  the  property  of  the  American  Union. 


i)\.  I 


i 


nil.! 


igr; 


seo 


LOUISIANA   CEDUO   TO   THE   UNITED   STATE!. 


[1803. 


At  the  time  when  the  treaty  for  the  cession  of  Louisiana  to  the 
United  States  was  concluded,  the  Spaniards  still  remained  in  pos- 
session of  the  country ;  the  order  from  the  court  of  Madrid  for  the 
delivery  to  France,  was  not  executed  until  the  30th  of  November, 
1804,  twenty  days  after  which  the  Hurronder  to  the  Anicrican  com- 
missioners  took  place  in  duo  form  at  New  Orleans.  The  Spanish 
government  had  already  protested  against  the  transfer  of  Louisiana 
to  the  United  States,  as  being  contrary  to  engagements  previously 
made  by  France,  of  which,  however,  no  proof  was  adduced ;  and 
some  disposition  was  at  first  manifested  on  the  part  of  the  Spanish 
authorities  at  New  Orleans,  and  in  the  provinces  of  Mexico  adjacent 
to  dispute  the  entrance  of  the  Americans.  This  opposition  was,  h<  <w< 
ever,  abandoned,  and  a  negotiation  was  commenced  at  Madrid  in 
1804,  between  the  governments  of  the  United  States  a^td  Spain, 
for  the  adjustment  of  the  lines  which  were  to  separati  ii,uir  re- 
spective territories. 

In  this  negotiation,  the  United  States  claimed  the  whole  of  the 
territory  ceded  by  France  to  Spain  in  1762,  with  the  exception  of 
the  portion  east  of  the  Mississippi,  which  had  been  surrendered  to 
Great  Britain  in  1763 ;  and  this  territory  was  considered  by  them 
as  including  the  whole  coast  on  the  Mexican  Gulf,  from  the  Perdido 
River  as  the  western  limit  of  Florida,  west  and  south  to  the  River 
BraVo  del  Norte  as  the  north-east  boundary  of  Mexico,  with  all  the 
intermediate  rivi  rs  and  all  the  countries  drained  by  them,  not  pre- 
viously possessed  by  the  United  States.  The  Spanish  government, 
on  its  side,  contended — that  Fiance  had  never  rightfully  possessed 
any  part  of  America  west  of  the  Mississippi,  the  whole  of  which 
had  belonged  to  Spain  ever  since  its  discovery  —  that  the  French 
establishments  in  that  territory  were  all  intrusive,  and  had  only 
been  tolerated  by  Spain,  for  the  sake  of  preserving  peace;  and  — 
that  the  Louisiana  ceded  to  Spain  by  France  in  1762,  and  retro- 
ceded  to  France  in  1800,  and  transferred  by  the  latter  power  to  the 
United  States  in  1803,  could  not,  in  ji^stice,  be  considered  as  com- 
prising more  thoti  New  Orleans,  with  ihc  uarA  in  its  vicirntv  east  of 
the  Mississippi,  and  the  country  in^uic  •]-)(. <v  .ordering  on  the  west 
bank  of  that  river.  The  parties  were  thus  completely  at  variance 
on  fundamental  principles ;  and,  neither  being  disposed  to  yield,  the 
negotiation,  after  having  been  carried  on  for  some  months,  was 
broken  off,  and  it  was  not  renewed  until  1817.  Meanwhile,  how- 
f,fer,  the  United  States  remained  in  possession  of  nearly  all  the 


1804.] 


NORTHERN  BOUNOART  Or  LOUISIANA. 


981 


territorifli  drained  by  Uw:  MiHiMippi;  the  Sabine  River  being,  by 
tacit  conaont,  regarded  as  tim  dividing  line  between  Louiiitiit 
and  the  Mexican  pi.,^inres.  i   i 

A  negotiation  was  at  the  same  time  i  progreai,  between  the 
government  of  the  Ui  ited  Stut(  md  that  of  Great  Britain  re- 
(ipecting  the  northern  boundary  of  Louisianu,  for  which  the  Amer- 
icans claimed  a  line  running  along  the  49th  put  li«l  of  latitude 
upon  the  grounds  that  thia  parallel  had  bfn  adopted  and  definitive' 
/y  settled,  by  commi$sariei  appointed  agret  ',■.,  >  ti  c  tenth  article 
of  the  treaty  concluded  at  Utrecht,  in  171.'  as  the  dividing  line 
between  the  French  possessions  of  Western  Caii  Ja  and  Louisiana  on 
the  south,  and  the  British  territories  of  Hudson  s  Bay  on  the  north ; 
and  that,  this  treaty  having  been  specially  confirmed  in  t  e  treaty 
of  1763,  by  which  Canada  and  the  part  of  Louisii  ia  enst  of  the 
Mississippi  and  Iberville  were  ceded  to  Great  Britain,  the  remainder 
of  Louisiana  continued,  as  before,  bounded  on  the  nortli  by  the  49th 
parallel. 

This  conclusion  would  be  undeniable,  if  the  premist  on  which 
it  is  founded  were  correct.  The  tenth  article  of  the  treaty  of 
Utrecht  does  certainly  stipulate  that  commissaries  houll  be  ap- 
pointed by  the  governments  of  Great  Britain  and  Franci  respec- 
tively, to  determine  the  line  of  separation  between  their  pot  essions 
in  the  northern  part  of  America  above  specified ;  and  t>  ere  is 
reason  to  believe  that  persons  were  commissioned  for  that  c  bject : 
hut  there  is  no  evidence  which  can  be  admitted  as  establishing  the  fact 
that  a  line  running  along  the  49th  parallel  of  latitude,  or  any  other 
line,  was  ever  adopted,  or  even  proposed,  by  those  commissaries,  •  r  by 
their  governments,  as  the  limit  of  any  part  of  the  French  possessions 
on  the  north,  and  of  the  British  Hudson's  Bay  territories  on  the 
south. 

It  is  true  that,  on  some  maps  of  Northern  America,  published  in 
the  middle  of  the  last  century,  a  line  drawn  along  the  49th  parallel 
does  appear  as  a  part  of  the  boundary  between  the  French  posses- 
sions and  the  Hudson's  Bay  territories,  as  settled  according  to  the 
treaty  of  Utrecht :  but,  on  other  maps,  which  are  deservedly  held 
in  higher  estimation,  a  different  line,  following  the  course  of  the 
highlands  encircling  Hudson's  Bay,  is  presented  as  the  limit  of  the 
Hud  «on'a  Bay  territory,  agreeably  to  the  same  treaty ;  and,  in  other 
mapa  again,  enjoying  equal,  if  not  greater,  consideration,  as  having 
been  published  under  the  immediate  direction  of  the  British  gov- 
36 


If 

lli  1 

«i  i 

1 

!■'■'■ 

'it       '1 

l-:;l 


m. 


IS 


M   i 


iSi 


383       TREATY  BETWEEN  ENGLAND  AND  THE  UNITED  STATES.     [1807. 

ernment,  no  line  ieparating  those  Britith  possessions  from  Louisiana 
or  Canada  is  to  be  seen.  In  the  other  works,  political,  historical, 
and  geographical,  which  have  been  examined  with  reference  to  this 
question,  nothing  has  been  found  calculated  to  sustain  the  belief 
that  any  line  of  separation  was  ever  settled,  or  even  proposed ;  nor 
has  any  trace  of  euch  an  agreement  been  discovered  in  the  archives 
of  the  Department  of  Foreign  Affairs  of  France,  which  have  been 
searched  with  the  view  of  ascertaining  the  fact.* 

The  belief,  nevertheless,  that  the  49th  parallel  of  latitude  was 
fixed,  by  commissaries  appointed  agreeably  to  the  provisions  of  the 
treaty  of  Utrecht,  as  the  northern  limit  of  Louisiana  and  Western 
Canada,  has  been  hitherto  universally  entertained  without  suspicion 
in  the  United  States,  and  has  formed  the  basis  of  most  important 
treaties. 

During  the  negotiations  above  mentioned,  between  the  United 
States  and  Great  Britain,  no  attempt  was  made,  on  the  part  of  the 
latter  power,  to  controvert  the  assertion  of  the  Americans  respecting 
this  supposed  boundary  line ;  and,  in  the  fifth  of  the  additional  and 
explanatory  tU'ticles  proposed  to  be  annexed  to  the  treaty  signed  by 
the  plenipotentiaries  on  that  occasion,  it  was  agreed  that  "  a  line 
drawn  due  north  or  south  (as  the  case  may  require)  from  the  most 
north-western  point  of  the  Lake  of  the  Woods,  until  it  shall  inter- 
sect the  49th  parallel  of  north  latitude,  and  from  the  point  of  such 
intersection,  due  west,  along  and  with  the  said  parallel,  shall  be  the 
dividing  line  between  his  majesty's  territories  and  those  of  the 
United  States,  to  the  westward  of  the  said  lake,  as  far  as  their  said 
respective  territories  extend  in  that  quarter ;  and  that  the  said  line 
shall,  to  that  extent,  form  the  southern  boundary  of  his  majesty's 
said  territories  and  the  northern  boundary  of  the  said  territories  of 
the  United  States :  Provided,  That  nothing  in  the  present  article 
shall  be  construed  to  extend  to  the  north-west  coast  of  America, 
or  to  the  territories  belonging  to  or  claimed  by  either  party  on  the 
continent  of  America  to  the  westward  of  the  Stony  Mountains."  f 
This  article  was  approved  by  both  governments ;  President  Jeflfer- 
son,  nevertheless,  wished  that  the  proviso  respecting  the  north-west 
coast  should  be  omitted,  as  it  "  could  have  little  other  effect  than 
as  an  offensive  intimation  to  Spain  that  the  claims  of  the  United 
States  extend  to  the  Pacific  Ocean.  However  reasonable  such 
claims  may  be,  compared  with  those  of  others,  it  is  impolitic,  espe- 

*  See  the  complete  investigation  of  this  subject  in  the  Proofs  and  IlIustrationB, 
under  the  letter  F. 
t  President  JeiTerson's  Message  to  Congress  of  March  32d,  1808. 


m 


1803.] 


WESTERN    BOUNDARY    OF    LOUISIANA. 


383 


ind  lUuBtrationB, 


cially  at  the  present  moment,  to  strengthen  Spanish  jealousies  of 
the  United  States,  which  it  is  probably  an  object  with  Great  Britain 
to  excite,  by  the  clause  in  question."  The  outrage  committed  by 
the  British  upon  the  American  frigate  Chesapeake,  together  with  the 
change  in  the  British  ministry,  prevented  the  ratification  of  this  treaty; 
and  the  discussion  of  boundaries  was  not  renewed  until  1814. 

How  far  Louisiana  extended  westward  when  it  was  ceded  by 
France  to  Spain,  there  are  no  means  of  determining.  The  question 
has  never  been  touched  in  treaties,  nor  even  in  negotiations,  so  far 
as  known.  The  French  maps  and  histories  are,  in  general,  so  en- 
tirely erroneous  as  regards  the  geography  of  America,  and  always 
so  absurd  in  their  statements  as  to  the  extent  of  the  French  domin- 
ions, that  they  are  of  no  value  as  evidence ;  while  the  charters  of 
the  British  sovereigns  appear,  at  present,  scarcely  less  extravagant. 
Those  charters,  embracing,  together,  the  whole  division  of  North 
America  between  the  48th  and  the  31st  parallels  of  latitude,  were, 
nevertheless,  maintained  by  Great  Britain  until  the  peace  of  1763, 
when  her  government,  by  agreeing  to  admit  the  Mississippi  as  the 
line  of  separation  between  her  dominions  and  those  of  France  on 
the  west,  implicitly  recognized  the  right  of  the  latter  power  to  the 
whole  territory  beyond  that  river,  between  the  same  parallels ;  and 
Louisiana  always  embraced  all  the  French  possessions  west  of  the 
Mississippi.  In  the  absence  of  more  direct  light  on  the  subject 
from  history,  we  are  forced  to  regard  the  boundaries  indicated  by 
nature  —  namely,  the  highlands  separating  the  waters  of  the  Mis- 
sissippi from  those  flowing  into  the  Pacific  or  the  Californian  Gulf — 
as  the  true  western  boundaries  of  the  Louisiana  ceded  by  France 
to  Spain  in  1762,  and  retroceded  to  France  in  1800,  and  trans- 
ferred to  the  United  States  by  France  in  1803 :  but  then  it  must 
also  be  admitted,  for  the  same  as  well  as  for  another  and  stronger 
reason,  that  the  British  possessions  farther  north  were  bounded  in 
the  west  by  the  same  chain  of  highlands ;  for  the  charter  of  the 
Hudson's  Bay  Company,  on  which  the  right  to  those  possessions 
was  founded  and  maintained,  expressly  included  only  the  countries 
traversed  by  streams  emptying  into  Hudson's  Bay. 

Even  before  the  transfer  of  Louisiana  to  the  United  States  was 
completed,  the  prompt  and  sagacious  JefTerson,  then  president  of 
the  republic,  was  preparing  to  have  that  part  of  the  continent  ex- 
amined by  American  agents.  In  January,  1803,  he  addressed  to 
the  Congress  of  the  Union  a  confidential  Message,  recommending 
that  means  should  be  taken  for  the  purpose  without  delay ;  and, 


Ml 


'  •      iliil 


S84  EXPEDITION   OF    LEWIS    AND   CLARKE   TO   THE    WEST.    [1805. 


l!  ;i|  i 


his  suggestions  having  been  approved,  he  commissioned  Captains 
Meriwether  Lewis  and  William  Clarke  to  explore  the  River  Mis- 
souri and  its  principal  branches  to  their  sources,  and  then  to  seek 
and  trace  to  its  termination  in  the  Pacific,  some  stream,  "  whether 
the  Columbia,  the  Oregon,  the  Colorado,  or  any  other,  which  might 
offer  the  most  direct  and  practicable  water  communication  across 
the  continent,  for  the  purposes  of  commerce."  Other  persons 
were,  at  the  same  time,  appointed  to  examine  the  Upper  Mississippi, 
and  the  principal  streams  falling  into  that  great  river  from  the  west, 
below  the  Missouri,  in  order  that  exact  information  might,  as  soon 
as  possible,  be  procured,  with  regard  to  the  channels  of  communi- 
cation throughout  the  newly-acquired  territories. 

A  few  days  after  Lewis  had  received  his  instructions  as  com- 
mander of  the  party  which  was  to  cross  the  continent,  the  news  of 
the  conclusion  of  the  treaty  for  the  cession  of  Louisiana  reached 
the  United  States ;  and  he  immediately  set  off  for  the  west,  with 
the  expectation  of  advancing  some  distance  up  the  Missouri  before 
the  winter.  He  was,  however,  unable  to  pass  the  Mississippi  in 
that  year,  in  consequence  of  the  delay  in  the  surrender  of  the 
country,  which  was  not  terminated  until  the  latter  part  of  Decem- 
ber ;  and  it  was  not  until  the  middle  of  May,  1804,  that  he  could 
begin  the  ascent  of  the  Missouri.  His  party  consisted  of  forty-four 
men,  who  were  embarked  in  three  boats ;  their  progress  against  the 
current  of  the  mighty  river  was  necessarily  slow,  yet,  before  the 
end  of  October,  they  arrived  in  the  country  of  the  Mandan  Indians, 
where  they  remained  until  the  following  April,  encamped  at  a  place 
near  the  48th  degree  of  latitude,  sixteen  hundred  miles  from  the 
Mississippi. 

On  the  7  th  of  April,  1805,  Lewis  and  Clarke  left  their  encamp- 
ment in  the  Mandan  country,  with  thirty  men,  the  others  having 
been  sent  back  to  St.  Louis ;  and,  after  a  voyage  of  three  weeks  up 
the  Missouri,  they  reached  the  junction  of  that  river  with  the  other 
principal  branch,  scarcely  inferior  in  magnitude,  called  by  the  old 
French  traders  the  Roche  jaune,  or  Yellowstone  River.  Thence 
continuing  their  progress  westward  on  the  main  stream,  their  navi- 
gation was,  on  the  13th  of  June,  arrested  by  the  Great  Falls  of  the 
Missouri,  a  series  of  cataracts  extending  about  ten  miles  in  length, 
in  the  principal  of  which  the  whole  river  rushes  over  a  precipice  of 
rock  eighty-seven  feet  in  height.  Above  the  falls,  the  party  again 
embarked  in  canoes  hollowed  out  from  the  trunks  of  the  largest 
cotton-wood  trees,  growing  near  the  river ;  and,  advancing  south- 


I!  I:  ' 


m 


n'> 


:sT.  [IS05. 

id  Captains 
River  Mis- 
hen  to  seek 
I,  "  whether 
vhich  might 
ation  across 
her  persons 
'  Mississippi, 
>m  the  west, 
ight,  as  soon 
)f  communi- 
ons as  com- 
the  news  of 
iana  reached 
le  west,  with 
issouri  before 
Mississippi  in 
jnder  of  the 
irt  of  Decem- 
that  he  could 
of  forty-four 
iss  against  the 
it,  before  the 
ndan  Indians, 
led  at  a  place 
liles  from  the 


1805.] 


PASSAGE    OF    THE    ROCKT   MOUNTAINS. 


285 


ward,  they,  on  the  19th  of  July,  passed  through  the  Gates  of  the 
Bocky  Mountains,  where  the  Missouri,  emerging  from  that  chain, 
runs,  for  six  miles,  in  a  nprrow  channel,  between  perpendicular 
parapets  of  black  rock,  rising  twelve  hundred  feet  above  its  surface. 
Beyond  this  place,  the  river  is  formed  by  the  confluence  of  several 
streams,  the  largest  of  which,  named  by  Lewis  the  Jefferson,  was 
ascended  to  its  sources,  near  the  44th  degree  of  latitude,  where  the 
navigation  of  the  Missouri  ends,  at  the  distance  of  about  three 
thousand  miles  from  its  entrance  into  the  Mississippi. 

Whilst  the  canoes  were  ascending  the  Jefferson  River,  Captains 
Lewis  and  Clarke,  with  some  of  their  men,  proceeded  through  the 
mountains,  and  soon  found  streams  flowing  towards  the  west,  one 
of  which  was  traced  in  that  direction,  by  Clarke,  for  seventy  miles ; 
they  also  met  several  parties  of  Indians  belonging  to  a  nation 
called  Shoshonee,  from  whose  accounts  they  were  convinced  that 
those  streams  were  the  hep.d-waters  of  the  Columbia.  Having  re- 
ceived this  satisfactory  information,  the  commanders  rejoined  their 
men  at  the  head  of  the  Jefferson ;  and  preparations  were  commenced 
for  pursuing  the  journey  by  land.  For  this  purpose,  the  canoes 
and  a  portion  of  tho  goods  were  concealed  in  caches,  or  covered 
pits,  and  a  number  of  horses,  with  some  guides,  being  procured 
from  the  Shoshonees,  the  whole  body  of  the  Americans,  on  the  30th 
of  August,  entered  on  the  passage  through  the  Rocky  Mountains. 

Up  to  this  period,  the  difficulties  of  the  journey  had  been  com- 
paratively light,  and  the  privations  few.  But,  during  the  three 
weeks  which  the  Americans  spent  in  passing  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
they  underwent,  as  Clarke  says,  "every  suffering  which  hunger, 
cold,  and  fatigue,  could  impose."  The  mountains  were  high,  and 
the  passes  through  them  rugged,  and,  in  many  places,  covered  with 
snow ;  and  their  food  consisted  of  berries,  dried  fish,  and  the  meat 
of  dogs  or  horses,  of  all  which  the  supplies  were  scanty  and  preca- 
rious. They  crossed  many  streams,  some  of  them  large,  which 
emptied  into  the  Columbia ;  but  their  guides  gave  them  no  encour- 
agement to  embark  on  any,  until  they  reached  one  called  the 
KoosJcoosTcee,  in  the  latitude  of  43  degrees  34  minutes,  about  four 
hundred  miles,  by  their  route,  from  the  head  of  navigation  of  the 
Missouri. 

At  this  place,  they  constructed  five  canoes,  and,  leaving  thcir 
horses  in  charge  of  a  tribe  of  Indians  of  the  Chopunnish  nation, 
they,  on  the  7th  of  October,  began  the  descent  of  the  Kooskooskee. 
Three  days  afterwards,  they  entered  the  principal  southern  branch 


:    1  ■' 


m 


P:     V    5 


m 


I  ;l  1 


i.Hi 


286 


DESCENT   Of   THE    COLUMBIA. 


[1805. 


of  the  Columbia,  to  which  they  gave  the  name  of  Lewis ;  and,  in  seven 
days  more,  they  reached  the  point  of  its  confluence  with  the  larger 
northern  branch,  called  by  them  the  Clarke.  They  were  then  fairly 
launched  on  the  Cheat  River  of  the  West,  and  passing  down  it, 
through  many  dangerous  rapids,  they,  on  the  31st,  arrived  at  the 
Falls  of  the  Columbia,  where  it  rushes  through  the  lofty  chain  of 
mountains  nearest  the  Pacific.  Some  of  their  canoes  descended 
these  falls  in  safety ;  the  others  and  the  goods  were  carried  around 
by  land,  and  replaced  in  the  water  at  the  foot  of  the  cataract.  At 
a  short  distance  below,  the  tides  of  the  Pacific  were  observed ;  and, 
on  the  15th  of  November,  the  whole  party  landed  on  Cape  Disap- 
pointment, at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  about  six  hundred  miles 
from  the  place  at  which  they  had  embarked  on  its  waters,  and  more 
than  four  thousand,  by  their  route,  from  the  mouth  of  the  Missouri. 

The  winter,  or  rather  the  rainy  season,  having  commenced  when 
the  party  reached  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  it  became  necessary 
for  them  to  remain  there  until  the  following  spring.  They  accord- 
ingly prepared  a  habitation  on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  eleven 
miles  in  a  straight  line  from  Cape  Disa^  ointment,  from  which  they 
were,  however,  soon  driven  by  the  floods ;  they  then  found  a  suit- 
able spot  on  the  south  side,  a  little  higher  up,  where  they  formed 
their  dwelling,  called  by  them  Fort  Clatsop,  and  remained  until 
the  middle  of  March,  1806.  During  this  period,  the  cold  was  by 
no  means  severe,  less  so,  indeed,  than  on  the  Atlantic  shore  of  the 
continent  ten  degrees  farther  south ;  but  the  rains  were  incessant 
and  violent,  and  the  river  being  at  the  same  time  generally  too 
much  agitated  by  the  winds  and  tho  waves  from  the  ocean  for  the 
Americans  to  venture  on  it  in  their  canoes,  they  were  often  unable 
to  obtain  provisions,  either  by  hunting  or  fishing.  The  Chtso^ 
Indians  who  occupy  the  south  side  of  the  Columbia,  at  its  mouth, 
and  the  ChinnooJcs,  on  the  opposite  shore,  conducted  themselves 
peaceably ;  but  their  prices  for  every  thing  which  they  offered  for 
sale  were  so  high,  that  no  trade  could  be  carried  on  with  them. 
The  party  were,  in  consequence  Oi  the  rains,  seldom  able  to  quit 
their  encampment ;  and  the  only  excursion  of  any  length  made  by 
them  during  the  winter,  was  as  far  as  the  promontory  overhanging 
the  Pacific,  thirty  miles  south  of  the  Columbia,  which  they  called 
darkens  Point  of  View,  near  the  Cape  Lookout  of  Meares. 

On  the  23d  of  March,  1806,  the  Americans  commenced  the 
ascent  of  the  Columbia  in  canoes,  on  their  return  to  the  United 
States.    Proceeding  slowly  up  the  river,  they  carefully  examined 


1806.] 


RETURN   or   LEWIS    AND   CLARKE. 


287 


its  shores,  and  discovered  a  large  stream,  called  by  the  natives  the 
Coxvelitz,  flowing  into  it  from  the  north,  at  the  distance  of  sixty 
miles  from  the  ocean.  Thirty  miles  higher  up,  they  found  another 
and  much  larger  stream,  joining  the  Columbia  on  the  south  side, 
the  Indian  name  of  which  was  supposed  to  be  Multonomah ;  it  is 
now,  however,  universally  known  as  the  Willamet,  and  on  its  banks 
are  situated  the  most  flourishing  settlements  as  yet  formed  by  citi- 
zens of  the  TTnited  States  west  of  the. Rocky  Mountains. 

In  the  middle  of  April,  the  exploring  party  reached  the  foot  of 
the  great  rapids,  below  the  Falls  of  the  Columbia,  where  they  aban- 
doned their  canoes,  and  began  their  journey  by  land,  on  horses 
purchased  from  the  Indians.  In  this  way,  they  traversed  the  gap  or 
defile  in  the  mountains  through  which  the  river  pours  its  floods, 
and  then,  pursuing  their  course  over  the  elevated  plains  east  of  that 
ridge,  they  arrived,  on  the  8th  of  May,  at  the  point  on  the  Koos- 
kooskee  River,  where  they  had  left  their  horses,  and  first  embarked 
on  the  waters  of  the  Columbia,  in  the  preceding  year.  From  this 
place,  they  continued  on  horseback  due  eastward,  through  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  to  the  Clarke  River,  which  flows  for  some  dis- 
tance in  a  northerly  direction  from  its  sources,  before  turning 
southward  to  join  the  other  branches  of  the  Columbia ;  and  there 
it  was  agreed  that  the  chiefs  of  the  expedition  should  separate,  to 
meet  again  at  the  confluence  of  the  Yellowstone  with  the  Missouri. 

The  separation  took  place  on  the  3d  of  July,  near  the  point  at 
which  the  Clarke  River  is  crossed  by  the  47th  parallel  of  latitude, 
due  west  of  the  Falls  of  the  Missouri.  Captain  Lewis  and  his 
party  proceeded  some  distance  northward,  down  the  Clarke,  and 
then,  quitting  it,  crossed  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the  head-waters  of 
Maria  River,  which  empties  into  the  Missouri  just  below  the  falls. 
There  they  met  a  band  of  Indians  belonging  to  the  numerous  and 
daring  race  called  the  Black-foot,  who  infest  the  plains  at  the  base 
of  the  mountains,  and  are  ever  at  war  with  all  other  tribes ;  these 
savages  attempted  to  seize  the  rifles  of  the  Americans,  and  Lewis 
was  obliged  to  kill  one  of  them  before  they  desisted.  The  party 
then  hastened  to  the  Missouri,  which  they  reached  at  the  falls,  and 
thence  floated  down  to  the  mouth  of  the  Yellowstone. 

Meanwhile,  the  others,  under  Clarke,  rode  southward  up  the 
valley  of  the  Clarke  River,  to  its  sources;  and,  after  exploring 
several  passes  in  the  mountains  between  that  point  and  the  head- 
waters of  the  Yellowstone,  they  embarked  in  canoes  on  the  latter 


•  ,  .         t 


S88 


IMPORTANCE   OT  THE  DI8COTEBIB8. 


[1806. 


stream,  and  descended  it  to  the  Missouri,  where  they  joined  Lewis 
and  his  men  on  the  1 2th  of  August. 

From  the  point  of  confluence  of  the  two  rivers,  the  whole  body 
moved  down  the  Missouri ;  and,  on  the  23d  of  September,  1806, 
they  arrived  in  safety  at  St.  Louis,  having  travelled,  in  the  course 
of  their  expedition,  more  than  nine  thousand  miles. 

The  preceding  sketch  of  the  long  and  difficult  expedition  of 
Lewis  and  Clarke  will  serve  to  show  the  general  course  of  their 
routes  between  the  Mississippi  and  the  Pacific.  As  to  the  priority 
and  extent  of  their  geographical  discoveries,  a  few  words  will 
suffice.  The  Missouri  had  been  ascended,  by  the  French  and 
Spanish  traders,  to  the  mouth  of  the  Yellowstone,  long  before 
Lewis  and  Clarke  embarked  on  it ;  but  ample  proofs  are  afforded, 
by  the  maps  drawn  prior  to  their  expedition,  that  no  information 
even  approximating  to  correctness  had  been  obtained  respecting  the 
river  and  the  countries  in  its  vicinity.  With  regard  to  the  territory 
between  the  great  Falls  of  the  Missouri  and  those  of  the  Columbia, 
and  the  branches  of  either  river  joining  it  above  its  falls,  we  have 
no  accounts  whatsoever  earlier  than  those  derived  from  the  journals 
of  the  American  exploring  party.  The  Tacoutchee-Tessee,  navi- 
gated by  Mackenzie  m  1793,  and  supposed  by  him  to  be  a  branch 
of  the  Columbia,  was  afterwards  discovered  to  be  a  different  stream, 
now  called  Fraser's  River,  emptying  into  the  StraU  of  Fuca ;  and 
no  evidence  has  been  adduced  of  the  passage  of  any  white  person 
through  the  country  between  the  Rocky  Mountains  and  the  Pacific, 
north  of  California,  from  the  time  of  Mackenzie's  journey  to  that 
of  the  expedition  of  Lewis  and  Clarke.* 

Politically,  the  expedition  was  an  announcement  to  the  world  of 
the  intention  of  the  American  government  to  occupy  and  settle  the 
countries  explored,  to  which  certainly  no  other  nation  except  Spain 
could  advance  so  strong  a  claim  op  the  grounds  of  discovery  or  of 
contiguity ;  ^nd  the  government  and  people  of  the  United  States 
thus  virtually  incurred  the  obligation  to  prosecute  and  carry  into 


*  The  journal  of  the  expedition  of  Lewis  and  Clarke  was  not  published  until  1814, 
when  it  appeared  nearly  in  the  same  state  in  which  it  came  from  the  hands  of  Lewit, 
shortly  before  the  melancholy  termination  of  his  existence.  It  affords  abundant  proofs 
of  the  powers  of  observation  possessed  by  those  who  were  engaged  in  the  enterprise; 
and  the  mass  of  facts,  geographically,  commercially,  and  politically  important,  which 
it  contains,  causes  it  still  to  be  regarded  as  the  principal  source  of  information  respect- 
ing the  geography,  the  natural  history,  and  the  aboriginal  inhabitants,  or  the  poitioru 
of  America  traversed  by  the  Missouri  and  the  Columbia. 


1806.] 


PIKE  S   EXPEDITION. 


289 


fulfilment  the  great  ends  for  which  the  labors  of  Lewis  and  Clarke 
were  the  first  preparatory  measures. 

During  the  absence  of  Lewis  and  Clarke,  other  persons  were 
engaged,  under  the  orderagnf  the  government  of  the  United  States, 
in  exploring  different  parts  of  the  interior  of  Louisiana.  Lieutenant 
Pike  ascended  the  Mississippi  to  its  head-waters,  near  the  48th 
degree  of  latitude,  where  he  obtained  much  useful  information 
respecting  the  course  of  that  stream,  and  the  numbers,  characters, 
and  dispositions,  of  the  Indians  in  its  vicinity,  as  well  as  concerning 
the  trade  and  establishments  of  the  North- West  Company  in  that 
quarter.  Having  completed  this  expedition.  Pike,  in  1806,  under- 
took another,  in  the  course  of  which  he  travelled  south-westward 
from  tl.3  mouth  of  the  Missouri,  to  the  upper  waters  of  the  Arkan- 
sas, the  Red  River,  and  the  Rio  Bravo  del  Norte :  on  the  latter 
river,  he  and  his  party  were  made  prisoners  by  the  Spaniards  of 
Santa  F6,  who  carried. them  southward  as  far  as  the  city  of  Chi- 
huahua, and  thence,  through  Texas,  to  the  United  States.  The 
Red  and  Washita  Rivers  were  at  the  same  time  explored,  to  a  con- 
siderable distance  from  the  Mississippi,  by  Messrs.  I^unbar,  Hunter, 
and  Sibley,  whose  journals,  as  well  as  those  of  Pike,  subsequently 
published,  contain  many  interesting  descriptions  of  those  parts  of 
America. 

Thus,  within  three  or  four  years  after  Louisiana  came  into  the 
possession  of  the  United  States,  it  ceased  to  be  an  unknown  region, 
and  the  principal  features  of  the  territory  drained  by  the  Columbia 

were  displayed. 

37 


'■'   M 


[         f: 


,f-- 


■ 

• 

SI  -SI 

■  <« 

WiW     M 

ii 

!-!■,? 


■^■ta?^'|t>  ■.  ; 


290 


i>> 


CHAPTER    XIV. 


1806  TO  1815. 


Fint  Establishments  of  the  North- West  Company  in  the  Countries  north  of  the 
Columbia — Pacific  Fur  Company  formed  at  New  York  —  Flan  of  its  Founder  — 
First  Expedition  from  New  York  in  the  Tonquin  —  Foundation  of  Astoria  near  the 
""^  Mouth  of  the  Columbia  River — Destruction  of  the  Tonquin  by  the  Savages  — 
h  March  of  the  Party  under  Hunt  and  Crooks  across  the  Continent  —  Arrival  of  the 
Beaver  in  the  Columbia  —  War  between  the  United  States  and  Great  Britain  fatal 
to  the  Enterprise  —  Establishments  of  the  Pacific  Company  sold  to  the  North- 
West  Company  —  Astoria  taken  by  the  British  —  Dissolution  of  the  Pacific 
Company. 

The  expeditions  of  Lewis  and  Clarke,  and  Pike,  did  not  fail  to 
attract  the  attention,  and  to  excite  the  jealousy,  of  the  British 
government  and  trading  companies.  Pike  had  restrained  the  incur- 
sions of  the  North- West  Company's  people  into  the  territories  of 
the  Upper  Mississippi,  and  had  lessened  their  influence,  over  the 
Indians  inhabiting  those  regions.  From  the  moment  when  Lewis 
and  Clarke  appeared  on  the  Missouri,  the<r  movements  were 
watched  by  the  agents  of  the  British  Association ;  and,  so  soon 
as  it  was  ascertained  that  they  were  ordered  to  explore  the  Colum- 
bia, preparations  were  made  to  anticipate  the  Americans  in  the 
settlement  of  that  portion  of  the  continent,  for  which  the  expedition 
of  those  officers  was  evidently  intended  to  open  the  way.  A  party 
of  the  North- West  Company's  men  was  accordingly  despatched,  in 
1805,  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Laroque,  to  establish  posts  and 
occupy  territories  on  the  Columbia ;  but  this  party  proceeded  no 
farther  than  the  Mandan  villages  on  the  Missouri.  In  the  following 
year,  1806,  another  party  was  despatched  from  Fort  Chipewyan, 
under  Mr.  Simon  Fraser,  who  crossed  the  Rocky  Mountains  near 
the  passage  of  the  Peace  River,  and  formed  a  trading  establishment 
on  a  small  lake,  now  called  Praser's  Lake,  situated  in  the  54th 
degree  of  latitude.  Hits  was  the  first  settlement  or  post  of  any  kind 
made  by  British  subjects  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  Other  posts 
were  subsequently  formed  in  the  same  country,  which,  in  1808, 
received  from  the  traders  the  name  of  New  Caledonia ;  but  it  does 


1806.] 


riRST   BRITISH    POSTS    IN   NEW   CALEDONIA. 


291 


not  appear,  from  any  evidence  as  yet  adduced,  that  any  part  of  the 
waters  of  the  Columbia,  or  of  the  country  through  which  y  flow, 
ws  seen  by  persons  in  th^  service  of  the  North- West  Company 
until  1811.* 

In  the  mean  time,  several  establishments  had  been  formed  by 
citizens  of  the  United  States  on  the  Columbia  and  its  branches. 

Before  the  transfer  of  Louisiana  to  the  United  States,  the  trade 
of  the  Missouri  and  the  adjacent  countries  inhabited  by  the  Indians, 
had  been  granted  by  the  Spanish  government  to  Manuel  Lisa,  a 
merchant  of  St.  Louis,  who  continued  to  conduct  it  almost  exclu- 
sively until  1806.  After  the  return  of  Lewis  and  Clarke,  other 
individuals  engaged  in  the  business,  the  competition  between  whom 
occasioned  many  and  serious  disputes ;  until  at  length,  in  1808,  an 
association,  called  the  Missouri  Fur  Company,  was  formed  among 


*  Many  interesting  details  respecting  tlie  proceedings  of  the  North- West  Com- 
pany, and  the  geography  of  the  parts  of  America  in  which  its  establishments  are 
•ituated,  may  be  found  in  the  journal  of  D.  W.  Harmon,  a  native  of  Vermont,  who 
was  a  partner  in  that  company,  and  the  superintendent  of  all  its  affairs  beyond  the 
Rocky  Mountains  for  several  years.  This  journal  was  published  at  Andover,  in 
Massachusetts,  in  1819,  but  is  now  nearly  out  of  print:  a  review  of  it,  containing 
many  curious  extracts,  may  be  seen  in  the  London  Quarterly  Review  for  Janu- 
ary, 1822. 

With  regard  to  the  dates  of  the  earliest  establishments  of  the  North- West 
Company  beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains,  the  following  extracts  from  Harmon's 
journal  may  be  considered  as  decisive  evidence:  — 

"  Saturday,  November  24(A,  1804.  —  Some  people  have  just  arrived  from  Montagne 
la  Basse,  with  a  letter  from  Mr.  Chaboillez,  who  informs  me  that  two  captains,  Clarke 
and  Lewis,  with  one  hundred  and  eighty  soldiers,  have  arrived  at  the  Mandan  village, 
on  the  Missouri  River,  which  place  is  situated  about  three  days'  distance  from  the 
residence  of  Mr.  Chaboillez.  They  have  invited  Mr.  Chaboillez  to  visit  them.  It  ia 
raid  that,  on  their  arrival,  they  hoisted  the  American  flag,  and  informed  the  natives 
that  their  object  was  not  to  trade,  but  merely  to  explore  the  country,  and  that,  as  soon 
as  the  navigation  shall  open,  they  design  to  continue  their  route  across  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  and  thence  descend  to  the  Pacific  Ocean. 

"  Wednesday,  April  10(A,  1805.  —  While  at  Montagne  la  Basse,  Mr.  Chaboillez  in- 
daced  me  to  consent  to  undertake  a  long  and  arduous  tour  of  discovery.  I  am  to  leave 
tliat  place  about  the  beginn-ng  of  June,  accompanied  by  six  or  seven  Canadians,  and 
two  or  three  Indians.  The  first  place  at  which  we  shall  stop  will  be  the  Mandan 
village,  on  the  Missouri  River ;  thence  we  shall  steer  our  course  towards  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  accompanied  by  a  number  of  the  Mandan  Indians,  who  proceed  in  tliat 
direction,  every  spring,  to  meet  and  trade  with  another  tribe  of  Indians,  who  reside 
on  the  other  side  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  [This  journey  I  never  undertook :  a 
Mr.  La  Roque  attempted  to  make  this  tour,  but  went  no  farther  than  the  Mandan 
village.]  " 

At  page  281,  Harmon  says,  "  The  part  of  the  country  west  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, with  which  I  am  acquainted,  has,  ever  since  the  North- West  Company  first 
made  an  establishment  there,  which  was  in  1806,  gone  by  the  name  of  JVeio  Cole- 
donia,"  &c.  And  in  many  places  he  speaks  of  Mr.  Simon  Fraser  as  having  led  the 
first  company  of  traders  beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains,  in  1806. 


U/  1 


It" 


i!    M 
!*    i, 


i! 


a 


1^ 


293 


riRBT  TBADIMQ    P0BT8   ON   THE   COLUMBIA. 


[1810. 


the  principal  traders  in  that  part  of  America,  by  which  posts  were 
establirhed  on  the  Upper  Mississippi,  the  Missouri,  and  even  beyond 
the  Rocky  Mountains.  The  trading  post  founded  by  Mr.  Henry, 
one  of  the  agents  of  the  Missouri  Company,  on  a  branch  of  the  Lewis 
River,  the  great  southern  arm  of  the  Columbia,  appears  to  have  been 
the  earliest  establishment  of  any  kind  made  by  people  of  a  civilized 
nation  in  the  territory  drained  by  the  latter  stream ;  the  enmity  of 
the  savages  in  its  vicinity,  and  the  difficulty  of  obtaining  provisions, 
however,  obliged  Mr.  Henry  to  abandon  it  in  1810. 

In  that  year,  an  attempt  was  made  by  Captain  Smith,  the  com- 
mander of  the  ship  Albatross,  from  Boston,  to  found  a  post  for  trade 
with  the  Indians  at  a  place  called  Oak  Point,  on  the  south  bank  of 
the  Columbia,  about  forty  miles  from  its  mouth.  For  this  purpose  a 
house  was  built  and  a  garden  was  laid  out  and  planted  there ;  but 
the  site  was  badly  chosen  in  all  respects,  and  the  scheme  was  aban- 
doned before  the  close  of  the  year. 

In  the  same  year,  1810,  an  association  was  ibiKied  at  New  York, 
for  the  prosecution  of  the  fur  trade  in  the  central  and  north-westera 
parts  of  the  continent,  in  connection  with  the  China  trade,  of  which 
a  particular  account  will  be  presented,  as  the  transactions  attend 
ing  the  enterprise  led  to  important  political  results. 
'  This  association  was  called  the  Pacific  Fur  Company,*  At  its 
head  was  John  Jacob  Astor,  a  Gcnnan  merchant  of  New  York, 
who  had  been  for  many  years  extoiiisively  engaged  in  the  commerce 
of  the  Pacific  and  China,  and  also  in  the  trade  with  the  Indian  coun- 
tries in  the  centre  of  the  American  continent,  and,  by  his  prudonce 
and  skill,  had  thus  accumulated  an  immense  fortune,  ere  he  passed 
the  meridian  of  life.  He  devised  the  scheme ;  he  advanced  the 
capital  requisite  for  carrying  it  into  execution,  and  he  directed  all 

*  The  following  account  of  the  proceedings  of  the  Pacific  Fur  Company  u  derived 
chiefly  from  —  Adventures  on  tlie  Columbia  River,  &c.,by  Ross  Cox.  London,  1831. 
—  Relation  d'un  Voyage  k  la  Cote  Nord-Ouest,  de  rAm6rique  Septentrionale,  dans  let 
Annees  1810-14,  par  Gabriel  Franch6re.  Montreal,  ISSO.  [Franchere  went  out 
with  the  first  party  in  the  Tonquin ;  Cox  went  out  in  the  ileaver,  and  they  both 
returned  to  Canada  by  way  of  the  lakes.]  —  Astoria,  or  Anecdotes  of  an  Enterprise 
beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains,  by  Washington  Irving,  Philadelphia,  1836 ;  the  latter 
author  gives  the  most  complete  account  of  the  circumstances,  particularly  of  the 
adventures  of  the  parties  under  Hunt,  Crooks,  and  Stuart,  derived  from  their  state- 
ments and  the  papers  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Astor,  to  which  he  had  access.  In  addi- 
tion to  these  authorities,  several  letters  and  papers,  addressed  by  Mr.  Astor  to  the  execu- 
tive of  the  United  States,  have  been  examined,  and  some  communications  have  been 
personally  received  from  that  gentleman.  One  of  his  letters,  containing  a  summary 
of  the  circumstances  connected  with  his  enterprise,  will  be  found  among  the  Proofii 
and  Illustrations,  at  the  end  of  this  volume,  under  the  letter  G. 


II 


[1810. 

)osts  were 

an  beyond 

!r.  Henry, 

'  the  Lewis 

have  been 

a  civilized 

enmity  of 

provisioni, 

h,  the  com- 
mt  for  trade 
ith  bank  of 
is  purpose  a 
there;  but 
e  was  aban- 

t  New  York, 
lOrth-western 
ide,  of  which 
tions  attend 

my*  At  its 
New  York, 
te  commerce 
Indian  coun- 
his  prudonce 
■re  he  passed 
idvanced  the 
directed  all 

lipany  is  derived 
I.  London,  1831. 
Lrionale,  dans  les 
Tchere  went  out 
and  they  both 
If  an  Enterprise 
I1836-,  the  latter 
Irticularly  of  the 
Vrom  their  state- 
Iccess.    Inaddi- 
Itortotheexecu- 
Vions  have  been 
ning  a  summary 
nong  theProoft 


1810.]  astor's  plans  ros  MONOFOLisiira  thi  ohina  tradk.      898 

the  operationi.    Hii  first  objects  were  to  concentrate  in  the  hands 
of  the  company  the  fur  trade  of  every  part  of  the  unsettled  territo« 
ries  of  America  claimed  by  the  United  States,  and  also  the  supply 
of  the  Russian  establishments  on  the  North  Pacific,  which  was  to  be 
conducted  agreeably  to  arrangemeiila  made  with  the  Russian  Amen* 
lean  Company,  similar  to  those  proposed  by  the  government  of  St. 
Petersburg  to  the  cabinet  at  Washington,  as  already  mentioned  ;  and 
by  the  attainment  of  these  first  objects,  he  expected  to  be  able  to  con- 
trol, if  not  exclusively  to  possess,  the  whole  commerce  between  the 
ports  of  China  and  those  of  America,  and  of  a  large  portion  of  Europe. 
For  these  purposes,  posts  were  to  be  established  on  the  Missouri, 
the  Columbia,  and  the  coasts  of  the  Pacific  contiguous  'o  the  latter 
river,  at  which  places  the  furs  were  to  be  collected  by  trade  with 
the  Indians,  or  by  hunters  in  the  employ  of  the  company.     The 
posts  were  to  be  supplied  with  the  merchandise  required,  either  by 
way  of  the  Missouri,  or  by  ships  despatched  from  the  ports  of  the 
United  States  to  the  North  Pacific ;  and  the  furs  collected  were  to  be 
can'ied  either  down  the  Missouri  to  the  Atlantic  ports  of  the  Union, 
or  westward  to  the  establishments  of  the  company  on  the  Pacific. 
The  merchandise  sent  to  the  Pacific  would  be  discharged,  in  the  first 
initance,  at  a  principal  factory,  to  be  founded  at  some  point  most 
convenient  for  distributing  the  articles  among  the  interior  posts, 
and   for  receiving  tho   furs  from   those  places;  and  the  vessels 
would  then  take  in  cargoes  of  furs,  which  they  would  transport 
to  Canton.     Vessels  would  also  be  sent,  either  directly  from  the 
United  States,  or  from  the  principal  factory  on  the  Pacific,  to  the 
Russian  American  establishments,  with  provisions  and  other  articles, 
for  which  furs  were  to  be  received  in  payment ;  and  from  Canton 
these  vessels  would  bring  to  Europe  or  America  teas,  silks,  and  other 
Chinese  goods,  procured  in  exchange  for  their  furs.     It  is  scarcely 
necessary  to  ad  I,  that  all  these  movements  were  to  be  conducted 
with  order  and  regularity,  and  at  stated  periods,  so  as  to  prevent  loss 
of  time  and  labor,  or  injury  to  the  various  articles  transported. 

The  number  of  shares  in  the  company  was  to  be  one  hundred : 
of  these  half  were  retained  by  Mr.  Astor,  who  was  to  advance  the 
funds  necessary  for  the  first  operations,  and  to  manage  the  con- 
cerns at  New  York ;  the  remaining  shares  being  divided  among  the 
other  partners,  who  were  to  conduct  the  business  in  the  western 
territories,  on  the  Pacific,  and  at  Canton.  The  association,  if 
prosperous,  was  to  continue  twenty  years,  after  which  it  might  be: 
prolonged;  hut  it  might  be  abandoned  by  any  of  the  partners,  or 


1  n  I 


rAcirio  rum  compant  i  or bmationi. 


[1810. 


1 1 


diMolved,  within  the  first  five  years,  Mr.  Aitor  bearing  all  the 
loHea  incurred  during  that  period. 

This  was  certa'niy  zu  extensive  and  complicated  scheme ;  but  it 
appeared,  at  the  time  when  it  was  devised,  to  be  perfectly  practicable. 
The  territories  in  which  the  now  establishments  were  to  be  formed, 
had  never  been  occupied :  there  could  be  no  doubt  that  the  Russiani 
would  gladly  agree  to  the  proposed  arrangements  for  the  trade  with 
their  factories ;  the  demand  for  furs  at  Canton  was  regular,  and  suf- 
ficiently  great  to  insure  the  superiority,  in  that  market,  to  those  who 
could  control  the  supply ;  and  the  Americans  would  possess,  in 
China  and  on  the  Pacific,  a  decided  advantage  over  the  Britieh, 
whose  flag  was  then  rarely  seen  in  the  Pacific,  in  consequence  of 
the  monopoly  enjoyed  by  the  East  India  Company.  Moreover,  there 
was  then  no  prospect  of  a  material  change  in  the  political  positions 
of  the  principal  nations  of  the  world. 

The  only  party  from  which  the  Pacific  Company  could  apprehend 
any  immediate  and  serious  difiiculties,  was  the  North- West  Company 
of  Montreal.  The  resources  of  that  body  were  in  every  respect 
inferior  to  Mr.  Aster's ;  but,  in  order  to  prevent  rivalry,  he  communi- 
cated his  intentions  confidentially  to  its  directors,  and  ofiercd  them 
an  interest  to  the  extent  of  one  third  in  his  enterprise :  they,  how- 
ever, rejected  his  proposal,  and  took  measures,  as  will  be  shown 
hereafter,  to  forestall  him.  Was  Mr.  Astor  —  a  citizen  of  the  United 
States  — justifiable  in  thus  offering  to  an  association  of  British  sub- 
jects, noted  for  its  enmity  to  his  adopted  country,  a  share  of  the  ad- 
vantages to  be  obtained  under  the  flag  of  the  United  States,  from  ter- 
ritories exclusively  belonging  to  the  United  States,  or  of  which  the 
exclusive  possession  by  the  United  States  was  evidently  essential  to 
the  welfare  and  advancement  of  the  republic  ? 

Having  matured  his  scheme,  Mr.  Astor  engaged  as  partners, 
clerks,  and  voyageurs,  a  number  of  Scotchmen  and  Canadians,  who 
had  been  in  the  service  of  the  North- West  Company,  and  afterwards 
a  number  rather  greater,  of  other  persons,  principally  natives  of  the 
United  States.  The  partners  first  admitted  were  Alexander  Macliay, 
who  had  accompanied  Mackenzie  in  his  expedition  to  the  Pacific  in 
1793,  Duncan  Macdougal,  and  Donald  Mackenzie,  all  Scotchmen, 
formerly  belonging  to  the  North- West  Company:  these  persons 
signed  the  constitution  or  articles  of  agreement  of  the  Pacific  Com- 
pany, with  Mr.  Astor,  on  the  23d  of  June,  1810 ;  having,  however, 
previously  communicated  the  whole  plan  of  the  enterprise  to  Mr. 
Jackson,  the  minister  plenipotentiary  of  Great  Britain  in  the  United 


[1810. 
ig  all  tho 

me ;  but  it 
practicable, 
be  formed, 
\ie  RuMiani 
)  trade  with 
lar,  and  suf- 

0  those  who 
possesa,  in 
the  Britich, 

.sequence  of 
>reover,  there 
ical  positions 

lid  apprehend 
^est  Company 
every  respect 
,  he  communi- 
i  offered  them 
le:  they,  how- 
|wiU  be  shown 

1  of  the  United 
)f  British  sub- 
iare  of  the  ad- 

ites,  from  ter- 
|r  of  which  the 
tly  essential  to 


1810.J 


PARTNERS    IN    THB    PAOiriC    COMPANY. 


896 


Btate»,  Mm  >  \\\\%\m\  all  their  loruples  as  to  engaging  in  it,  by  AMur- 
ing  them  thu^  '  %n  can  of  a  war  between  the  two  nationt,  they  would 
be  retptcted  at  British  $ub/ects  and  merchanti."  The  partners  sub- 
sequently admitted  were  David  and  Robert  Stuart,  and  Ramsay 
Crooks,  Scotchmen,  who  had  also  been  in  tho  service  of  the  North- 
Wost  Company,  and  Wilson  Price  Hunt,  John  Clarke,  and  Robert 
Maclcllun,  citizens  of  tho  United  States.  The  majority  of  the  clerks 
were  Americans ;  among  tho  others  wore  Ross  Cox,  an  Englishman, 
and  Gabriel  Franchire,  a  Canadian,  each  of  whom  has  written  an 
interesting  history  of  the  enterprise.  The  voyageura  were  nearly  all 
from  Canada.  Mr.  Hunt,  a  native  of  New  Jersey,  was  chosen  as 
chief  agent  of  tho  company,  to  superintend  all  its  concerns  on  the 
western  side  of  America  for  five  years. 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that,  although  the  chief  direction  of  the  con- 
cerns of  the  Pacific  Fur  Company,  in  New  York  and  on  the  western 
side  of  the  continent,  were  at  first  intrusted  to  American  citizens, 
yet  the  majority  not  only  of  the  inferior  servants,  but  also  of  the 
partners,  were  British  subjects,  nearly  all  of  whom  had  baen  in  the 
service  of  a  rival  British  association. 

The  preparations  for  commencing  the  enterprise  having  been 
completed,  four  of  the  partners,  Messrs.  Mackay,  JViacdougal,  David 
Stuart,  and  Robert  Stuart,  with  eleven  clerks,  thirteen  Canadian 
toyageurs,  and  five  mechanics,  all  British  subjects,  took  their 
departure  from  New  York  for  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  River,  in 
September,  1810,  in  the  ship  Tonquin,  commanded  by  Jonathan 
Thome.  In  January  following,  the  second  detachment,  conducted 
by  Mr.  Hunt,  the  chief  agent,  and  Messrs.  Maclellan,  Mackenzie, 
and  Crooks,  set  out  for  the  same  point,  by  way  of  the  Missouri  River ; 
and  in  October,  1811,  the  ship  Beaver,  under  Captain  Sowles,  car- 
ried out  from  New  York,  to  the  North  Pacific,  Mr.  Clarke,  with  six 
clerks  and  a  number  of  other  persons. 

Mr.  Astor  had  already,  in  1809,  despatched  the  ship  Enterprise, 
under  Captain  Ebbets,  an  intelligent  and  experienced  seaman  and 
trader,  to  make  observations  at  various  places  on  the  north-west 
coasts  of  America,  and  particularly  ai  the  Russian  settlements,  and 
to  prepare  the  way  for  the  new  establishments.  He,  also,  in  1811, 
sent  an  agent  to  St.  Petersburg,  by  whose  means  he  concluded  an 
wrangement  with  the  Russian  American  Company,  to  the  effect 
that  his  association  should  have  the  exclusive  privileges,  of  supplying 
the  Russian  establishments  on  the  North  Pacific  with  merchandise, 
receiving  furs  in  payment,  and  of  transporting   to  Canton  such 


■r- 


1. 

!L.  ,11 


;3d6 


THE    ASTORIA   ENTERPRISE   BEGUN. 


[1811. 


Other  furs  as  the  Russians  might  choose  to  ship  for  that  port,  on 
'their  own  account,  provided  that  the  Americans  should  visit  no 
other  parts  of  the  coast  north  of  a  certain  latitude. 

The  Tonquin  passed  around  Cape  Horn,  and  in  February,  1811, 
arrived  at  Owyhee,  where  Macdougal,  who  was  to  superintend  the 
affaire  of  the  company  on  the  Pacific  and  its  coasts  until  the  arrival 
of  Hunt,  endeavored  to  conclude  a  treaty  of  amity  and  commerce 
with  King  Tamahamaha :  but  that  aged  chief,  whom  experience  had 
rendered  distrustful,  refused  to  bind  himself  by  any  contract  with 
'the  white  men ;  and  he  would  only  promise  to  furnish  the  vessels  of 
the  company  with  provisions  on  the  same  terms  with  other  vessels 
—  namely,  on  payment  of  the  value  in  Spanish  dollars.  Having 
obtained  the  necessary  supplies  in  this  way,  and  taken  on  board  a 
dozen  of  the  islanders,  who  were  permitted  by  their  sovereign  to 
engage  in  the  service  of  the  Pacific  Company,  Captain  Thome  sailed 
for  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  where  he  effected  an  entrance  on 
the  24th  of  March,  with  great  danger  and  difficulty,  after  losing 
three  of  his  men,  who  attempted  to  reach  the  shore  in  a  boat. 

The  passengers  immediately  disembarked  on  the  shore  of  Baker's 
Bay,  on  the  north  side  of  the  Columbia,  just  within  Cape  Disappoint- 
ment, where  sheds  were  built  for  their  temporary  accommodation.  A 
few  days  afterwards,  the  partners  setoff  in  search  of  a  place  proper 
for  the  establishment  of  a  factory ;  and  they  soon  selected  for  that  ob- 
ject a  spot  on  the  south  bank  of  the  river,  distant  about  ten  miles  from 
the  ocean,  which  had  received  from  Broughton,  in  1792,  the  name  of 
Point  George.  To  this  place  the  Tonquin  was  removed ;  and,  her 
goods  and  materials  being  landed,  preparations  were  commenced  for 
the  erection  of  a  fort  and  other  houses,  and  for  building  a  sma!) 
vessel,  of  which  the  frame  had  been  brought  out  from  New  York.  In 
the  course  of  two  months,  these  works  were  so  far  advanced,  that 
the  assistance  of  the  ship's  crew  was  no  longer  needed ;  and  Captain 
Thorne  accordingly  sailed  on  the  5th  of  June  for  the  northern  coasts, 
carrying  with  him  Mr.  Mackay  who  was  to  conduct  the  trade,  and 
to  make  arrangements  with  the  Russians,  Mr.  Lewis  one  of  the 
clerks,  and  an  Indian  who  spoke  English,  to  serve  as  interpreter. 

During  the  ensuing  summer,  much  progress  was  made  in  the 
buildings  for  the  factory,  which,  in  honor  of  the  head  of  the  com- 
pany, was  named  Astoria.  A  large  piece  of  ground  was  cleared 
and  laid  out  as  a  garden,  in  which  various  vegetables  were  planted; 
the  small  vessel  was  finished  and  launched ;  trade  was  carried  on 
with  the  neighboring  Indians,  and  also  with  others  from  the  higher  j 


Til  ■  '" 


1811.] 


DAVID   THOMPSON   VISITS    ASTORIA. 


297 


parts  of  the  river,  who  gave  skins,  fish,  and  game,  in  exchange  for 
manufactured  articles ;  and  every  thing,  in  fine,  seemed  to  promise 
success  to  the  enterprise.  ,i  ..If  ?<r 

While  the  Astorians  were  thus  engaged,  they  were  unexpectedly 
visited,  on  the  15th  of  July,  by  a  party  of  the  North- West  Company's 
men,  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  David  Thompson,  the  surveyor  or 
astronomer  of  that  body.  These  men  had  been  despatched  from 
Canada  in  the  preceding  year,  with  the  object  of  forestalling  the 
Americans  in  the  occupation  of  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  which 
they  hoped  to  eflfect  before  the  end  of  that  season :  but  they  were 
so  long  delayed  in  seeking  a  passage  through  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
that  they  were  obliged  to  winter  in  that  ridge,  near  the  northernmost 
sources  of  the  Columbia,  under  the  52d  parallel  of  latitude ;  whence 
they  hastened  down  the  river  in  the  spring  of  1811,  building  huts 
and  erecting  flags  at  various  places,  by  way  of  taking  possession  of 
the  country.  They  were  received  at  the  fort  not  as  rivals,  but  as 
friends ;  and  were  treated  with  the  utmost  respect  and  hospitality, 
during  their  stay,  by  their  old  companion,  the  superintendent, 
Macdougal,  who,  moreover,  furnished  them  with  provisions,  and 
even  with  goods,  for  trading  on  their  departure  up  the  river. 

Mr.  Thompson  and  his  followers  in  this  expedition  were,  from 
all  the  accounts  as  yet  made  public,  the  first  white  persons  who 
navigated  the  northern  branch  of  the  Columbia,  or  traversed  any 
part  of  the  country  drained  by  it.  The  British  commissioners,  in  the 
negotiation  with  the  American  plenipotentiary  at  London,  in  1826, 
nevertheless,  attempted  to  place  Mr.  Thompson's  expedition  on 
an  equality,  not  only  as  to  extent  of  discovery,  but  also  as  to  date, 
with  that  of  Lewis  and  Clarke ;  and  to  represent  the  establishments 
which  he  is  said  to  have  founded  on  his  way  down  the  Columbia  as 
prior  to  those  formed  by  the  Pacific  Company.  In  their  statement 
of  the  claims  of  Great  Britain  to  territories  west  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, they  say* — "The  United  States  further  pretend  that  their 
claim  to  the  country  in  question  is  strengthened  and  confirmed  by 
the  discovery  of  the  sources  of  the  Columbia,  and  by  the  exploration 
of  its  course  to  the  sea  by  Lewis  and  Clarke,  in  1805-6.  In  reply 
lO  this  allegation,  Great  Britain  affirms,  and  can  distinctly  prove, 
that,  if  not  before,  at  least  in  the  same  and  subsequent  years,  her 
North- West  Trading  Company  had,  by  means  of  their  agent,  Mr. 
Thompson,  already  established  their  posts  among  the  Flat-head  and 

*  See  the  British  Btatement,  among  the  Proofs  and  lUustrations,  in  the  latter  part 
of  this  volume,  under  the  letter  H. 

38 


m 


298 


MARCH  or  HUNT,  MACLELLAN,  AND  CROOKS. 


[1812. 


m 


Kootanie  tribes,  on  the  head-waters  or  main  branch  of  the  Columbia, 
and  were  gradually  extending  them  down  the  principal  stream  of 
that  river ;  thus  giving  to  Great  Britain  in  this  particular,  as  in  the 
discovery  of  the  mouth  of  the  river,  a  title  of  parity  at  least,  if  not 
of  priority  of  discovery,  as  opposed  to  the  United  States.  It  was 
from  these  posts  that,  having  heard  of  the  American  establishment 
forming  in  1811  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  Mr.  Thompson  hastened 
thither,  descending  the  river  to  ascertain  the  nature  of  that  estab- 
lishment." The  expression  "  if  not  before,  at  least  in  the  same  and 
following  years"  used  here,  is  rather  indefinite.  In  order  to  show 
how  it  should  be  understood  conformably  with  truth,  it  will  be 
proper  to  repeat  —  that  Lewis  and  Clarke  descended  the  Columbia 
and  reached  its  mouth  before  the  middle  of  November,  1805—^ 
that  the  North- West  Company  made  their  first  establishment  beyond 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  at  some  distance  north  of  any  part  of  the  Co- 
lumbia, in  1806  —  that  American  establishments  were  formed  on 
the  Columbia  in  1809, 1810,  and  1811 — and,  finally,  that  Thompson 
did  not  arrive  among  the  Kootanie  and  Flat-head  tribes  until  the 
spring  of  1811,  after  the  foundation  of  Astoria. 

Mr.  Thompson  and  his  people  were  accompanied,  on  their  return, 
by  a  party  from  the  factory,  under  Mr.  David  Stuart,  who  established 
a  post  at  the  confluence  of  a  stream,  called  the  Okinagan,  with  the 
north  branch  of  the  Columbia,  about  six  hundred  miles  above  the 
mouth  of  the  latter  river,  and  remained  there  during  the  winter. 
The  situation  of  those  left  at  Astoria  was,  in  the  mean  time,  very  un- 
pleasant, and  their  spirits  were  depressed  by  various  circumstances. 
Their  supplies  of  provisions  were  scanty  and  uncertain,  and  nothing 
was  heard,  for  some  months,  of  the  party  who  were  to  come  over  land 
from  the  United  States ;  the  Tonquin,  which  was  expected  to  return 
to  the  river  in  September,  did  not  appear,  and  rumors  were  brought 
by  the  Indians  of  the  destruction  of  a  ship,  and  the  massacre  of  her 
crew,  by  the  natives  near  the  Strait  of  Fuca.  Nothing,  however, 
occurred  at  the  factory,  worthy  of  note,  until  the  18th  of  January, 
1812,  when  a  portion  of  the  detachment  sent  across  the  continent 
arrived  there  in  the  most  wretched  condition. 

This  detachment,  consisting  of  about  sixty  men,  under  the  chief 
agent,  Hunt,  and  the  partners.  Crooks,  Mackenzie,  and  Maclellan, 
ascended  the  Missouri  River  in  boats,  from  its  mouth  to  the  country 
of  the  Arickara  Indians,  distant  about  fourteen  hundred  miles  higher ; 
during  which  voyage  tliey  were  constantly  annoyed  by  their  rivals 
of  the  Missouri  Company ;  and,  there  quitting  the  river,  they  took  a 


1812.]    MARCH    OF    HUNT    AND    HIS    PARTY   TO   THE    COLUMBIA.       299 

wcHtward  course  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  which  they  crossed  in 
September,  1811,  near  the  head  of  the  Yellowstone  River.  On 
the  western  side  of  the  ridge,  they  found  a  large  stream,  probably 
the  main  branch  of  the  Lewis,  on  which  they  embarked  in  canoes, 
with  the  expectation  of  thus  floating  down  to  the  Falls  of  the  Colum- 
bia ;  but  ere  they  had  proceeded  far  in  this  way,  they  encountered 
so  many  dangers  and  obstructions,  from  falls  and  rapids,  that  they 
were  forced  to  abandon  the  stream  and  resume  their  march.  It 
would  be  needless  here  to  attempt  to  describe  the  many  evils  from 
hunger,  thirst,  cold,  and  fatigue,  which  these  men  underwent  during 
their  wanderings  through  that  dreary  wilderness  of  snow-clad  moun- 
tains, in  the  winter  of  1811-12 :  suflice  it  to  say,  that,  after  several 
of  their  number  had  perished  from  one  or  more  of  these  causes,  the 
others  reached  Astoria  in  separate  parties,  in  the  first  months  of 
1812,  having  spent  more  than  a  year  in  coming  from  St.  Louis. 
At  the  factory  they  found  shelter,  warmth,  and  rest ;  but  they  had 
little  food,  until  the  flsh  began  to  enter  the  river,  when  they  obtained 
abundant  supplies  of  pilchards,  of  the  most  delicious  flavor. 

On  the  5th  of  May,  1812,  the  ship  Beaver,*  commanded  by  Cap- 
tain Sowles,  arrived  in  the  Columbia,  from  New  York,  bringing 
the  third  detachment  of  persons  in  the  service  of  the  Pacific  Com- 
pany, under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Clarke,  and  twenty-six  natives  of 


■;l 


*  Ross  Cox,  who  arrived  at  Astoria  in  the  Beaver,  in  May,  1812,  gives  the  follow- 
ing account  of  the  establishment  as  it  then  appeared :  — 

"The  spot  selected  for  the  fort  [Astoria]  was  a  handsome  eminence,  called  Point 
George,  which  commanded  an  extensive  view  of  the  majestic  Columbia  in  front, 
boanded  by  the  bold  and  thickly-wooded  northern  shore.  On  the  right,  about  three 
miles  distant,  a  long,  high,  and  rocky  peninsula,  covered  with  timber,  called  Tongue 
Point,  extended  a  considerable  distance  into  the  river  from  the  southern  side,  with 
which  it  was  connected  by  a  narrow  neck  of  land ;  while,  on  the  extreme  leil,  Cape 
Disappointment,  with  the  bar  and  its  terrific  chain  of  breakers,  were  distinctly  visible. 
The  buildings  consisted  of  apartments  for  the  proprietors  and  clerks,  with  a  capacious 
dining-hall  fbr  both ;  extensive  warehouses  for  the  trading  goods  and  furs,  a  provision 
rtore,  a  trading  shop,  smith's  forge,  carpenter's  shop,  &c.;  the  whole  surrounded  by 
stockades,  forming  a  square,  and  reaching  about  fifteen  feet  above  the  ground.  A 
gallery  ran  around  the  stockades,  in  which  loopholes  were  pierced,  sufficiently  large 
for  musketry ;  two  strong  bastions,  built  of  logs,  commanded  the  four  sides  of  the 
square ;  each  bastion  had  two  stories,  in  which  a  number  of  chosen  men  slept  every 
night;  a  six  pounder  was  placed  in  the  lower  story  of  each,  and  they  were  both  well 
provided  with  small  arms.  Immediately  in  front  of  the  fort  was  a  gentle  declivity, 
sloping  down  to  the  river's  side,  which  had  been  turned  into  an  excellent  kitchen 
garden ;  and,  a  few  hundred  rods  to  the  left,  a  tolerable  wharf  had  been  run  out,  by 
which  bateaux  and  boats  were  enabled,  at  low  water,  to  land  their  cargoes  with- 
out sustaining  any  damage.  An  impenetrable  forest  of  gigantic  pines  rose  in  the 
rear,  and  the  ground  was  covered  with  a  thick  underwood  of  brier  and  whortleberry, 
'ntermingled  with  fern  and  honeysuckle." 


m 


■$ 


800 


DESTRCCTIOK   07   THE   TON^IUIN   BT   SAVAGES, 


[1812L 


the  Sandwich  Islands,  who  were  engaged  as  seamen  or  laborers. 
The  Beaver,  moreover,  brought  from  Owyhee  a  letter  which  had 
been  left  there  by  Captain  Ebbets,  of  the  ship  Enterprise,  contain- 
ing positive  information  of  the  destruction  of  the  Tonquin  and  her 
crew  by  the  savages  on  the  coast  near  the  Strait  of  Fuca;  the 
particulars  of  this  melancholy  affair  were  not,  however,  learned 
until  August  of  the  following  year,  when  they  were  communicated 
at  Astoria  by  the  Indian  who  had  gone  in  the  Tonquin  as  inter- 
preter, and  was  the  only  survivor  of  those  on  board  the  ill-fated  ship. 

According  to  this  interpreter's  account,  the  Tonquin,  after  quit- 
ting the  river,  sailed  northward  along  the  coast  of  the  continent, 
and  anchored,  in  the  middle  of  June,  1811,  opposite  a  village  on 
the  Bay  of  Clyoquot,  near  the  entrance  of  the  Strait  of  Fuca.  She 
was  there  immediately  surrounded  by  crowds  of  Indians  in  canoes, 
who  continued  for  some  days  to  trade  in  the  most  peaceable  manner, 
so  as  to  disarm  Captain  Thome  and  Mr.  M*^Kay  of  all  suspicions. 
At  length,  either  in  consequence  of  an  affront  given  to  a  chief  by 
the  captain,  or  with  the  view  of  plundering  the  vessel,  the  natives 
embraced  an  opportunity  when  the  men  were  dispersed  on  or  below 
the  decks,  in  the  performance  of  their  duties,  and  in  a  moment  put 
to  death  every  one  of  the  crew  and  passengers,  except  the  inter- 
preter, who  leaped  into  a  canoe,  and  was  saved  by  some  women,  and 
the  clerk,  Mr.  Lewis,  who  retreated,  with  a  few  sailors,  to  the  cabin. 
The  survivors  of  the  crew,  by  the  employment  of  their  fire-arms, 
succeeded  in  driving  the  savages  from  the  ship ;  and,  in  the  night, 
four  of  them  quitted  her  in  a  boat,  leaving  on  board  Mr.  Lewis  and 
some  others,  who  were  severely  wounded.  On  the  following  day, 
the  natives  again  crowded  around  and  on  board  the  Tonquin ;  and 
while  they  were  engaged  in  rifling  her,  she  was  blown  up,  most 
probably  by  the  wounded  men  left  below  deck.  The  seamen  who 
had  endeavored  to  escape  in  the  boat  were  soon  retaken,  and  put 
to  death  in  the  most  cruel  manner,  by  the  Indians ;  the  interpreter 
was  preserved,  and  remained  in  slavery  two  years,  at  the  end  of 
wiiich  time  he  was  suffered  to  depart. 

The  loss  of  this  ship  was  a  severe  blow  to  the  Pacific  Company; 
but  the  partners  at  Astoria  were  consoled  by  the  reflections,  that 
their  chief  could  bear  pecuniary  damages  to  a  far  greater  extent 
without  'njury  to  his  credit,  and  that,  if  their  enterprise  should  prove 
successful,  ample  indemnification  would  soon  be  obtained.  It  was 
therefore  determined  that  Mr.  Hunt  should  embark  in  the  Beaver, 
to  superintend  the  trade  along  the  northern  coasts,  and  visit  the 


1813.]    WAR   BETWEEN   THE    UNITED    STATES   AND    G.  BRITAIN.       301 

Russian  establishments,  as  Mr.  Mackay  would  have  done,  but  for 
the  destruction  of  the  Tonquin  ;  and  he  accordingly  took  his  de- 
parture in  that  ship  in  August,  1812,  leaving  the  superintendence 
of  the  affairs  at  the  factory,  as  before,  in  the  hands  of  Mr.  Mac- 
dougal.  A  party  was  at  the  same  time  despatched  to  the  upper 
country,  by  which  another  trading  post  was  established  on  the 
Spokan,  a  stream  joining  the  northern  branch  of  the  Columbia, 
about  six  hundred  and  fifty  miles  from  the  ocean ;  and  accounts  of 
all  the  transactions,  to  that  period,  were  transmitted  to  the  United 
States,  under  the  care  of  Messrs.  Crooks,  Maclellan,  and  Robert 
Stuart,  who  recrossed  the  continent,  and  reached  New  York  in  tho 
spring  of  1613,  after  encountering  difficulties  and  dangers  greater, 
in  many  respects,  than  those  undergone  in  their  journey  to  the 
Pacific. 

The  trade  with  the  Indians  of  the  Lower  Missouri  was,  in  the 
mean  time,  going  on  prosperously ;  provisions  were  abundant  at 
Astoria,  and  a  large  quantity  of  furs  was  collected  there,  in  expecta- 
tion of  the  arrival  of  the  Beaver,  which  was  to  take  them  to  Canton 
in  the  ensuing  spring.  The  hopes  of  the  partners  were  thus  revived, 
and  they  had  daily  additional  grounds  for  anticipating  success  in  their 
undertaking,  when,  in  January,  1813,  they  learned  that  the  United 
States  had  declared  war  against  Great  Britain  in  June  previous. 
This  news  spread  an  instantaneous  gloom  over  the  minds  of  all, 
which  was  increased  by  information  received  from  a  trading  vessel, 
that  the  Beaver  was  lying  at  Canton,  blockaded  by  a  British  ship  of 
war :  and  soon  afterwards,  Messrs.  Mactavish  and  Laroque,  partners 
in  the  North- West  Company,  arrived  near  Astoria,  with  sixteen  men, 
bringing  accounts  of  the  success  of  the  British  arms  on  the  northern 
frontiers  of  the  United  States,  and  of  the  blockade  of  all  the 
Atlantic  coasts  of  the  latter  country  by  British  squadrons. 

Notwithstanding  these  circumstances,  Laroque  and  Mactavish 
were  received  and  treated  by  Macdougal  and  Mackenzie,  the  only 
partners  of  the  Pacific  Company  then  at  Astoria,  with  the  same 
attention  and  hospitality  which  had  been  shown  to  Thompson  in 
the  preceding  year ;  and  were  supplied  with  provisions  and  goods 
for  trading,  as  if  they  had  been  friends  and  allies,  instead  of  com- 
mercial rivals  and  political  enemies.  A  series  of  private  conferences 
were  then  held  between  the  chief  persons  of  the  two  parties,  at  the 
conclusion  of  which,  Macdougal  and  Mackenzie  announced  their 
determination  that  the  company  should  be  dissolved  on  the  1st  of 
July,  and  sent  messengers  to  communicate  the  fact  to  th3  other 


1  -     If    s 

"  It*  :• 


302 


HUNT  S   NEGOTIATIONS   WITH   BARANOF. 


[1813. 


in 


partners,  Stuart  and  Clarke,  at  the  Okinagan  and  Spokan  posts. 
The  latter  gentleman,  on  receiving  this  news,  hastened  to  the 
factory,  and  there  strongly  opposed  the  determination  to  abandon 
the  enterprise  ;  and  it  was  at  length  agreed  among  them,  that  the 
establishments  should  be  maintained  a  few  months  longer,  at  the 
end  of  which  time,  the  company  should  be  dissolved,  unless  assist- 
ance were  received  from  the  United  States.  Three  of  the  clerks, 
including  Ross  Cox,  however,  immediately  quitted  the  concern, 
and,  entering  the  service  of  the  North- West  Company,  took  their 
departure  for  the  upper  country  with  Laroque  and  Mactavish, 
in  July. 

From  the  United  States  no  assistance  came.  The  ship  Lark  was 
despatched  from  New  York,  in  March,  1813,  with  men  and  goods 
for  the  Columbia ;  but  she  was  wrecked  in  October  fo^'owing,  near 
one  of  the  Sandwich  Islands,  on  which  the  captain,  N  )rthrup,  and 
crew  succeeded  in  effecting  a  landing.  The  American  government 
also  determined,  in  consequence  of  the  representations  of  Mr.  Aster, 
to  send  the  frigate  Adams  to  the  North  Pacific,  for  the  protection 
of  the  infant  establishment ;  but,  just  as  that  ship  was  about  to  sail 
from  New  York,  it  became  necessary  to  transfer  her  crew  to  Lake 
Ontario,  and  the  blockade  of  the  coasts  of  the  United  States  by  the 
British  rendered  all  further  efforts  to  convey  succors  to  Astoria 
unavailing. 

In  the  mean  time,  Mr.  Hunt,  the  chief  agent,  who  had  sailed 
from  the  Columbia  in  the  Beaver,  in  August,  1812,  as  already  men- 
tioned, visited  the  principal  Russian  establishments  on  the  north- 
west coasts  of  America,  and  the  adjacent  islands,  and  collected  a 
large  quantity  of  furs,  besides  concluding  arrangements  highly 
advantageous  to  the  Pacific  Company,  with  Governor  Baranof,*  at 
Sitka.  It  was  then  agreed  between  Mr.  Hunt  and  Captain  Sowles, 
that  the  Beaver  should  proceed,  by  way  of  the  Sandwich  Islands,  to 
Canton,  instead  of  returning  to  the  Columbia,  as  had  been  previous- 
ly determined ;  and  this  was  done,  though  Hunt  went  no  farther  in 
her  than  to  Woahoo,  one  of  the  Sandwich  group,  where  he  remained 
several  months,  waiting  for  some  vessel  to  carry  him  to  Astoria. 
At  length,  in  June,  1813,  the  ship  Albatross,  of  Boston,  arrived  at 


*  An  amusing  account  of  the  negotiations  between  Hunt  and  Baranof  is  given  in 
Mr.  Irving's  Astoria.  The  chief  agent  of  the  Pacific  Company  appears  to  hare  been 
in  as  much  danger  from  the  "  potations  pottlr  deep"  of  raw  rum  and  burning  punch, 
which  accompanied  each  of  his  interviews  with  the  governor  of  Russian  America,  aa 
from  hunger,  thirst,  savages,  or  storms,  during  his  whole  expedition. 


1813.] 


ASTORIA    SOLD   TO   THE    NORTH-WEST   COMPANY. 


303 


Woahoo,  from  China,  bringing  information  of  the  war  between  the 
United  States  and  Great  Britain,  and  also  that  the  Beaver  was 
blockaded  by  a  British  ship  at  Canton ;  on  learning  which,  Mr. 
Hunt  chartered  the  Albatross,  and  proceeded  in  her  to  the  Colum- 
bia, where  he  arrived  on  the  4th  of  August. 

Mr.  Hunt  was  astounded  on  learning  the  resolution  adopted  by 
the  other  partners  at  Astoria  during  his  absence,  which  he  endeav- 
ored to  induce  them  to  change ;  but,  finding  them  determined,  he 
reluctantly  acceded  to  it  himself,  and,  after  a  few  days,  he  re- 
embarked  in  the  Albatross,  for  the  Sandwich  Islands,  in  search  of 
some  vessel  to  convey  the  property  of  the  Pacific  Company  to  a 
place  of  safety.  At  the  Sandwich  Islands  no  vessel  could  be  found ; 
and  Hunt  accordingly  continued  in  the  Albatross  until  she  arrived 
at  Nooahevah,  (one  of  the  Washington  Islands,  discovered  by 
Ingraham,  in  1791,)  where  he  learned  from  Commodore  David 
Porter,  who  was  lying  there  in  the  American  frigate  Essex,  that  a 
large  British  squadron,  under  Commodore  Hillyar,  was  on  its  way 
to  the  Columbia.  This  news  caused  Hunt  to  hasten  back  to  the 
Sandwich  Islands,  which  he  reached  in  December,  soon  after  the 
wreck  of  the  Lark ;  and,  having  there  chartered  a  small  brig,  called 
the  Pedler,  he  sailed  in  her  to  Astoria,  where  he  arrived  in 
February,  1814. 

The  fate  of  the  Pacific  Company,  and  its  establishments  in  North- 
West  America,  had,  however,  been  decided  some  time  before  the 
Pedler  reached  Astoria. 

Soon  after  the  departure  of  Hunt,  Mr.  Mactavish  and  his  followers 
of  the  Nortu-West  Company  again  appeared  at  Astoria,  where  they 
expected  to  meet  a  ship  allied  the  Isaac  Todd,  which  had  sailed 
from  London  in  March,  laden  with  goods,  and  under  convoy  of  a 
British  squadron,  charged  "  to  take  and  destroy  every  thing  Amer- 
ican on  the  north-west  coast"  They  were  received  as  before, 
and  allowed  to  pitch  their  camp  unmolested  near  the  factory ;  and 
private  conferences  were  held  between  Mactavish  and  Macdougal, 
the  results  of  which  were,  after  some  days,  communicated  to  the 
other  partners,  and  then  to  the  clerks  of  the  Pacific  Company. 
These  results  were  set  forth  in  an  agreement,  signed  on  the 
16th  of  October,  1813,  between  Messrs.  Mactavish  and  Alexander 
Stuart,  on  the  one  part,  and  Messrs.  Macdougal,  Mackenzie,  and 
Clarke,  on  the  other ;  by  which  all  the  "  establishments ,  furs,  and 
itock  in  hand"  of  the  Pacific  Company,  in  the  country  of  the 


'.'  i  ■  ' 


304 


ASTORIA   TAKEN   BY   THE   BRITISH. 


[1813. 


Columbia,  were  sold  to  the  North-West  Company,  for  about  fifty, 
eight  thousand  dollars. 

Whilst  the  business  of  valuing  the  furs  and  goods  at  Astoria,  and 
of  transferring  them  to  their  new  owners,  was  in  progress,  the  British 
sloop  of  war  Raccoon  appeared  at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  under 
the  command  of  Captain  Black,  who  had  been  despatched  from  the 
South  Pacific,  by  Commodore  Hillyar,  for  the  purpose  of  taking  the 
American  forts  and  establishments  on  the  Columbia,  and  had  hast- 
ened thither  in  expectation  of  securing  some  glory,  and  a  rich  share 
of  prize-money,  by  the  conquest.  On  approaching  the  factory, 
however,  the  captain  soon  saw  that  he  should  gain  no  laurels ;  and, 
after  it  had  been  formally  surrendered  to  him  by  Mr.  Macdougal, 
he  learnt,  to  his  infinite  dissatisfaction,  that  its  contents  had  become 
the  property  of  British  subjects.  He  could,  therefore,  only  haul 
down  the  flag  of  the  United  States,  and  hoist  that  of  Great  Britain 
in  its  stead,  over  the  establishment,*  the  name  of  which  was,  with 
due  solemnity,  changed  to  Fort  George ;  and,  having  given  vent  to 
his  indignation  against  the  partners  of  both  companies,  whom  he 
loudly  accused  of  collusion  to  defraud  himself  and  his  officers  and 
crew  of  the  reward  due  for  their  exertions,  he  sailed  back  to  the 
South  Pacific. 

The  brig  Pedler  arrived  in  the  Columbia,  as  before  said,  on  the 
-28th  of  February,  1814,  and  Mr.  Hunt  found  Macdougal  super- 
intending the  factory,  not,  however,  as  chief  agent  of  the  Pacific 
Company,  but  as  a  partner  of  the  North-West  Company,  into 
which  he  had  been  admitted.  Hunt  had,  therefore,  merely  to 
close  the  concerns  of  the  American  association  in  that  quarter,  and 
to  receive  the  bills  on  Montreal,  given  in  payment  for  its  effects; 
after  which  he  reembarked  in  the  Pedler,  with  two  of  the  clerks, 
and  proceeded,  by  way  of  Canton  and  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  to 
New  York.  Of  the  other  persons  who  had  been  attached  to  the 
Pacific  Fur  Company's  establishments,  some  were  murdered  by  the 
Indians  on  Lewis  River,  in  the  summer  of  1813;  some,  including 
Mr.  Franchere,  the  author  of  the  narrative  of  the  expeditions,  re- 
turned over  land  to  the  United  States,  or  to  Canada ;  and  some 
remained  on  the  Columbia,  in  the  service  of  the  North-West  Com- 
pany. The  long-e\pected  ship  Isaac  Todd  reached  Fort  George 
on  the  17th  of  April,  thirteen  months  after  her  departure  from  Eng- 


*  See  the  account  of  the  capture  of  Astoria,  extracted  fTom  Coz,  in  the  Proofs 
and  Illustrations,  under  the  letter  G,  New  3. 


1814.]  TERMINATION    OF    THB    ASTORIA    ENTERPRISE. 


305 


land,  bringing  a  large  stock  of  supplies  ;  by  the  aid  of  which  the 
partners  of  the  North- West  Company  were  enabled  to  extend  their 
operations,  and  to  establish  themselves  more  firmly  in  the  country. 

Such  was  the  termii  ion  of  the  Astoria  enterprise;  for  no 
attempt  has  been  since  made  by  any  of  the  persons  who  were  en- 
gaged in  it  to  form  establishments  on  the  western  side  of  America. 
It  was  wisely  planned :  the  resources  for  conducting  it  were  ample ; 
and  its  failure  was  occasioned  by  circumstances,  the  principal  of 
which  could  not  have  been  reasonably  anticipated  at  the  time  of  its 
commencement.  That  ships  might  be  lost  at  sea,  or  that  parties  might 
be  destroyed  by  savages,  or  perish  from  cold  or  hunger, — casualties 
such  as  these  were  expected.,  and  provisions  were  made  for  the  con- 
tingencies. But,  in  1810,  when  the  Beaver  sailed  from  New  York, 
no  one  believed  that,  before  the  end  of  two  years,  the  United  States 
would  be  at  war  with  the  greatest  maritime  power  in  the  world. 
By  that  war  the  whole  plan  was  traversed.  Communications  by 
sea  between  the  United  States  and  the  Pacific  coasts  became  difii- 
cult  and  uncertain,  whilst  those  by  land  were  of  little  advantage, 
and  were  always  liable  to  interruption  by  the  enemy ;  and  there 
was,  in  fact,  no  object  in  collecting  furs  rm  the  Columbia,  when 
those  articles  could  not  be  transported  to  China. 

The  Pacific  Company,  nevertheless,  might,  and  probably  would, 
have  withstood  all  these  difiiculties,  if  the  directing  partners  on  the 
Columbia  had  been  Americans,  instead  of  being,  as  the  greater  part 
of  them  were,  men  unconnected  with  the  United  States  by  birth,  or 
citizenship,  or  previous  residence,  or  family  ties.  Mr.  Astor  de- 
clares that  he  would  have  preferred  the  loss  of  the  establishments 
and  property  by  a  fair  capture,  to  the  sale  of  tliem  in  a  manner 
which  he  considered  disgraceful;  yet,  although  the  conduct  of 
Macdougal  and  Mackenzie,  in  that  sale,  and  subsequently,  was 
such  as  to  authorize  suspicions  with  regard  to  their  motives,  they 
could  not  have  been  expected  to  engage  in  hostilities  s^inst  their 
compatriots  and  former  friends.  Being  thus  restrained  from  defend- 
ing the  honor  of  the  Pacific  Company  by  force,  they  may  have  con- 
sidered themselves  bound  to  take  care  of  its  interests,  by  the  only 
means  in  their  power,  as  they  did  in  the  sale.  American  citizens 
would  have  resisted  the  North- West  Company,  and  would  doubt- 
less have  maintained  their  supremacy,  in  the  couQtry  of  the  Co- 
lumbia, for  some  time,  possibly  until  peace  had  been  made  between 
Great  Britain  and  the  United  States. 
39 


■  i 

111-      i  ;:ii 


Jr<  El 

5|5T  ■* 

if. 


806 


CHAPTER    XV. 

.  1814  TO  1820.  ,     ,. 

Reititution  of  Aitoria  to  the  United  Statei  by  Great  Britain,  agreeably  to  the  Treaty 
of  Ghent  —  Alleged  Rosorvation  of  Kighta  on  tlio  Part  of  Great  Britain  —  Fint 
Negotiation  bet.vcen  the  Governmonta  of  Great  Britain  and  tho  Uniti'd  States, 
respecting  tho  Territories  weit  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  Convention  for  the 
joint  Occupancy  of  those  Territories  —  Florida  Treaty  between  Spain  and  the 
United  States,  by  which  the  Latter  acquires  the  Title  of  Spain  to  the  North- 
West  Coasts  —  Colonel  Long's  exploring  Expedition  to  the  Rocky  Mountains  — 
Disputes  between  the  British  North- West  and  Hudson's  Bay  Companies  —  Union 
of  those  Bodies  —  Act  of  Parliament  extending  tho  Jurisdiction  of  the  Canada 
Courts  to  tlie  Pacific  Countries  —  Russian  Establishments  on  the  North  Pacific— 
Expeditions  in  Seaich  of  Northern  Passages  between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific 
—  Death  of  Tamahamaha,  and  Introduction  of  Christianity  into  the  Sandwich 
Islands. 

The  capture  of  Astoria  by  the  British,  and  the  transfer  of  the 
Pacific  Company's  establishments  on  the  Columbia  to  the  North- 
West  Company,  were  not  known  to  tho  plenipotentiaries  of  the 
United  States  at  Ghent,  on  the  24th  of  December,  1814,  when 
they  signed  the  treaty  of  peace  between  their  country  and  Great 
Britain.  That  treaty  contains  no  allusion  whatsoever  to  the  north- 
west coasts  of  America,  or  to  any  portion  of  the  continent  west  of 
the  Lake  of  the  Woods.  The  plenipotentiaries  of  the  United 
States  had  been  instructed  by  their  government  to  consent  to  no 
claim  on  the  part  of  Great  Britain  to  territory  in  that  quarter  south 
of  the  49th  parallel  of  latitude,  for  reasons  which  have  been  already 
stated ;  and,  after  some  discussion,  they  proposed  to  the  British  an 
article  similar  in  efTect  to  the  fifth  article  of  the  convention  signed, 
but  not  definitively  concluded,  in  1807,  according  to  which,*  a 
line  drawn  along  that  parallel  should  separate  the  territories  of  the 
powers  so  far  as  they  extended  west  of  the  Lake  of  the  Woods, 
provided,  however,  that  nothing  in  the  article  should  be  construed 
as  applying  to  any  country  west  of  the  Rocky  Mou  itains.  The 
British  plenipotentiaries  were  willing  to  accept  this  article,  if  it  were 
also  accompanied  by  a  provision  that  their  subjects  should  have 
access  to  the  Mississippi  River,  through  the  territories  of  the  United 

*  For  the  reasons  and  the  convention  here  mentioned,  see  chap.  xiii. 


1815.] 


THE    UNITED    STATES   CLAIM   ASTORIA. 


307 


StnteB,  and  the  riRht  of  navigating  it  to  tho  sea ;  but  the  Americans 
rcfiijcd  positively  to  agree  to  such  a  stipulation,  and  tho  question 
of  boundaries  west  of  the  Lake  of  the  Woods  was  left  unsettled  by 
the  treaty. 

It  was  nevertheless  agreed,  in  the  first  article  of  tho  treaty  of 
Ghent,  that  "  all  territory,  places,  and  po$»e»iions,  whatsoever,  taken 
6y  either  party  from  the  other  during  the  war,  or  which  may  be  taken 
after  the  signing  of  this  treaty,  excepting  only  the  islands  hereinafter 
mentioned,  [in  the  Bay  of  Fundy,]  shall  be  restored  without  delay ; " 
and,  in  virtue  of  this  article,  Mr.  Monroe,  the  secretary  of  state  of 
the  United  States,  on  the  18th  of  July,  1815,  announced  to  Mr. 
Baker,  the  chargh  d'affaires  of  Great  Britain  at  Washington,  that 
the  president  intended  immediately  to  reoccupy  the  post  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Columbia.  This  determination  seems  to  have  been 
taken  partly  at  tho  instance  of  Mr.  Astor,  who  was  anxious,  if  pos- 
sible, to  recommence  operations  on  his  former  plan  in  North- West 
America;  but  no  measures  were  adopted  for  the  purpose  until 
September,  1817,  when  Captain  J.  Biddle,  commanding  the  sloop 
of  war  Ontario,  and  Mr.  J.  B.  Prevost,  were  jointly  commissioned 
to  proceed  in  that  ship  to  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  and  there 
"to  issert  the  claim  of  the  United  States  to  the  sovereignty  of  the 
adjacent  country,  in  a  friendly  and  peaceable  manner,  and  without 
the  employment  of  force."  * 

A  few  days  after  the  departure  of  Messrs.  Biddle  and  Prevost  for 
the  Pacific,  on  this  mission,  Mr.  Bagot,  the  British  plenipotentiary 
at  Washington,  addressed  to  Mr.  J.  Q.  Adams,  the  American 
secretary  of  state,  some  inquiries  respecting  the  destination  of  the 
Ontario,  and  the  objects  of  her  voyage ;  and,  having  been  informed 
on  those  points,  he  remonstrated  against  the  intended  occupation 
of  the  post  at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  on  the  grounds  « that 
the  place  had  not  been  captured  during  the  latf)  war,  but  that  the 
Americans  had  retired  from  it,  under  an  agreement  with  the  North- 
Wcst  Company,  which  had  purchased  their  effects,  and  had  ever 
since  retained  peaceable  possession  of  the  coast ; "  and  that  "  the 
territory  itself  was  early  taken  possession  of  in  his  majesty's  name, 
and  had  been  since  considered  as  forming  part  of  his  majesty's 
dominions ; "  under  which  circumstances,  no  claim  for  the  restitution 
of  the  post  could  be  founded  on  the  first  articie  of  the  treaty  of 
Ghent.     At  what  precise  time  this  possession  was  taken,  or  on 

*  See  President  Monroe's  message  to  Congress  of  April  t5th,  1822,  and  the  accom- 
panying documents. 


■  i»  -..1  i . 


i.     :l. 


308         O.   BRITAIN   DENIES   THE    CLAIM    Or   THE    V.    STATES.     [I8I8. 

what  grounds  tho  territory  wns  considered  as  part  of  the  British 
dominions,  the  minister  did  not  attempt  to  show. 

Mr.  Bogot  at  the  same  time  communicated  tho  circumstances  to 
his  government,  and  they  became  the  subjects  of  discuHsion  between 
Lord  Castlercagh,  the  British  secretary  for  foreign  affairs,  and  Mr. 
Rush,  tho  American  plenipotentiary  at  London.  Lord  Castlercagh 
proposed  that  the  question  respecting  the  claim  to  the  post  on  the 
Columbia  should  Ih)  referred  to  commissioners,  as  many  other  dis- 
puted points  had  been,  agreeably  to  tho  treaty  of  Ghent ;  to  which 
Mr.  Rush  objected,  for  the  simple  reasons  —  that  the  spot  was  in  the 
possession  of  the  Americans  before  tho  war ;  that  it  fell,  by  bel- 
ligerent capture,  into  the  hands  of  the  British  during  the  war ;  and 
that,  *'  under  a  treaty  which  stipulated  the  mutual  restitution  of  all 
places  reduced  by  tho  arms  of  cither  party,  the  right  of  the  United 
States  to  immediate  and  full  repossession  could  not  be  impugned." 
The  British  secretary,  upon  this,  admitted  the  right  of  the  Ameri- 
cans to  be  reinstated,  and  to  be  tho  party  in  possession,  while 
treating  on  the  title ;  though  he  regretted  that  the  government  of 
the  United  States  should  have  employed  moans  to  obtain  restitution 
which  might  lead  to  difficulties.  Mr.  Rush  had  no  apprehensions 
of  that  kind ;  and  it  was  finally  agreed  that  the  post  should  be 
restored  to  the  Americans,  and  that  the  question  of  the  title  to  the 
territory  should  be  discussed  in  tho  negotiation  as  to  limits  and 
other  matters,  which  was  soon  to  be  commenced.  Lord  Bathurst, 
the  British  secretary  for  the  colonics,  accordingly  sent  to  the  agents 
of  the  North- West  Company  at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  a 
despatch,  directing  them  to  afford  due  facilities  for  the  reoccupation 
of  the  post  at  that  point  by  the  Americans ;  and  an  order  to  the 
same  efTect  was  also  sent  from  the  Admiralty  to  the  commander  of 
the  British  naval  forces  in  the  Pacific. 

The  Ontario  passed  around  Cape  Horn  into  the  Pacific,  and 
arrivod.  in  February,  1818,  at  Valparaiso,  where  it  was  agreed 
between  the  commissioners  that  Captain  Biddle  should  proceed  to 
the  CoAunvbia,  and  receive  possession  of  Astoria  for  the  United 
Stairs,  Mr.  Prevost  remaining  in  Chili  for  the  purpose  of  transact- 
ing some  business  with  the  government  of  that  country,  which  had 
also  been  intrusted  to  him.  Captain  Biddle  accordingly  sailed  to 
the  Columbia,  and,  on  the  9th  of  August,  he  took  temporary  pos- 
session of  the  country  on  that  river,  in  the  name  of  the  United 
States,  after  which  he  returned  to  the  South  Pacific. 

In  the  mean  time.  Commodore  Bowles,  the  commander  of  the 


I'?  U"- 


1818.] 


ASTORIA    RESTORED   TO   THE    UNITBO    STATES. 


800 


Britisli  naval  forces  in  the  South  Soa,  roccived  at  Rio  do  Janeiro 
the  order  from  the  Admiralty  fur  tlio  surrender  of  the  post  on  the 
Columbia  to  the  Americans.  This  order  ho  transmitted  to  Captain 
Sliorifl*,  the  senior  oiiicer  of  the  ships  in  the  Pacific,  who,  meeting 
Mr.  Provost  at  Valparaiso,  informed  him  of  the  contents  of  the 
order,  and  oflured  him  a  passage  to  the  Columbia,  for  the  purpose 
of  completing  the  business,  aH  it  certainly  could  not  have  l)oen  done 
by  Captain  Biddle.  This  ofl'ur  was  accepted  by  the  American 
commissioner,  who  proceeded,  in  the  British  frigate  Blossom,  to  the 
Columbia,  and  entered  that  river  in  the  beginning  of  October ;  and 
Mr.  Keith,  the  superintending  partner  of  the  North- West  Company 
at  Fort  George,  or  Astoria,  having  also  received  the  order,  from  the 
colonial  de|)artmcnt  at  London,  for  the  surrender  of  the  place,  the 
affair  was  soon  despatched.*'  On  the  6th  of  the  month.  Captain 
Hickey  and  Mr.  Keith,  as  joint  commissioners  on  the  part  of  Great 
Britain,  presented  to  Mr.  Prcvost  a  paper  declaring  that,  in  obe- 
dience to  the  commands  of  the  prince  regent,  as  signified  in  Lord 
Bathurst's  despatch  of  the  27th  of  January  previous,  and  in  con- 
fonnity  to  the  first  article  of  the  treaty  of  Ghent,  they  restored  to 
the  government  of  the  United  States,  through  its  agent,  Mr.  Prevost, 
the  settlement  of  Fort  George,  on  the  Columbia  River ;  and  Mr. 
Prevost,  in  return,  gave  another  paper,  setting  forth  the  fact  of  his 
acceptance  of  the  settlement  for  his  government,  agreeably  to  the 


*  Preiidcnt  Monroe's  inessaf^n  to  Con^eiB  of  April  17th,  1S2S,  accompanied  by 
Mr.  Provost's  letter,  dutnl  Monurey,  November  lltb,  1818.  The  two  papers  abora 
mentioned  are  of  so  itnuh  importance,  that  they  are  here  given  at  length. 

The  act  of  tMiv^tf  presented  by  the  British  commissioners  is  as  follows :  — 

"In  obodii  nc»  to  tiK  commands  of  his  Royal  Highness  tlie  Prince  Regent,  signi- 
fied in  a  despUiHk  fpumt  the  right  honorable  the  Earl  Bathurst,  addressed  to  the  part- 
ners or  agents  of  the  North- West  Company,  beasing  date  the  27th  of  January,  1818, 
and  in  obudoenco  to  a  subsequent  order,  dated  the  26th  of  July,  from  W.  H.  Sheriff, 
Esq.,  captain  of  his  Majesty's  ship  Andromache,  we,  the  undersigne«l,  do,  in  conform- 
ity to  the  first  article  of  the  treaty  of  Ghent,  restore  to  the  G'  vernment  of  the 
United  States,  through  its  agent,  J.  B.  Prevost,  Esq.,  the  settlement  of  Fort  George, 
on  the  Columbia  River.  Given  under  our  har»d«,  m  "trTpIicate,  at  Fort  George, 
(Columbia  River,)  thi    6th  day  of  October,  181B. 

"F.  HicKEY,  Captain  of  ku,  Majuty'a  ship  Blossom. 
"J.KKiTHfOf  the  JS'orth-fVcst  Company." 

The  act  of  acceptance,  on  the  part  of  the  American  commissioner,  is  in  these  words :  — 

"  I  do  hereby  acknowledge  to  have  this  day  received,  in  behalf  of  the  Government 
of  the  United  States,  the  possession  of  the  settlement  designated  above,  in  conformity 
to  the  first  article  of  the  treaty  of  Ghent.  Given  under  my  hand,  in  triplicate,  at 
Port  George,  (Columbia  River,)  this  6th  of  October,  1818. 

"J.  B.  Prkvost,  Agent  for  the  United  Statei." 


i     M,\ 


r-:.i 


■'     ■ 


810 


PRRTENDED    RESERVATION    OF   THE   BRITISH. 


[1818. 


'  ■ ," 


III 


i 


above-mentioned  treaty.  The  British  flag  was  then  formally  low- 
ered, and  that  of  the  United  States,  having  been  hoisted  in  its  stead 
over  the  fort,  was  saluted  by  the  Blossom. 

The   documents  above  cited  —  the    only  ones  which   passed 
between  the  commissioners  on  this  occasion — are  sufficient  to 
show  that  no  reservation  or  exception  was  made  on  the  part  of  Great 
Britain,  and  that  the  restoration  of  Astoria  to  the  United  States 
was  complete  and  unconditional.     Nevertheless,  in  a  negotiation 
between  the  governments  of  those  nations,  in  1826,  relative  to  the 
territories  of  the  Columbia,  it  was  maintained  by  the  plenipoten- 
tiaries of  Great  Britain,*  that  the  restoration  of  Astoria  could  not 
have  been  legally  required  by  the  United  States,  in  virtue  of  the 
treaty  of  Ghent,  because  the  place  was  not  a  national  possession, 
nor  a  military  post,  and  was  not  taken  during  war ;  but  "  in  order 
that  not  even  the  shadow  of  a  reflection  might  be  cast  upon  the  good 
faith  of  the  British  government,  the  latter  determined  to  give  the 
most  liberal  extension  to  the  terms  of  the  tieaty  of  Ghent;  and 
in  1818,  the  purchase  which  the  British  Company  had  made  in 
1813  was  restored  to  the  United  States ;   particular  care  being, 
however,  taken,  on  this  occasion,  to  prevent  any  misapprehension  as 
to  the  extent  of  the  concession  made  by  Great  Britain."     In  support 
of  this  last  assertion,  two  documents  are  produced,  as  having  been 
addressed,  in  1818,  by  the  British  ministers  to  their  own  agents,  and 
which,  though  never  before  published,  or  communicated  in  any  toay  to 
the  United  States,  were  considered  by  the  plenipotentiaries,  in  1826, 
as  putting  the  "  case  of  the  restoration  of  Fort  Astoria  in  too  clear 
a  light  to  require  further  observation."     One  of  these  documents  is 
presented  as  an  extract  from  Lord  Castlereagh's  despatch  to  Mr. 
Bagot,  dated  February  4th,  1818,  in  which  his  lordship  says,  "You 
will  observe,  that  whilst  this  government  is  not  disposed  to  contest 
with  the  American  government  the  point  of  possession,  as  it  stood 
in  the  Columbia  River,  at  the  moment  of  the  rupture,  they  are  not 
prepared  to  admit  the  validity  of  the  title  of  the  government  of  the 
United  States  to  this  settlement.     In  signifying,  therefore,  to  Mr. 
Adams  the  full  acquiescence  of  your  government  in  the  reoccupa- 
tion  of  the  limited  position  which  the  United  States  held  in  that 
river  at  the  breaking  out  of  the  war,  you  will,  at  the  same  time,  assert, 
in  suitable  terms,  the-  claim  of  Great  Britain  to  that  territory,  upon 
which  the  American  settlement  must  be  considered  an  encroach- 


*  Statement  presented  by  the  British  plenipotentiaries  to  Mr.  Gallatin,  among  the 
Proofs  and  Illustrations,  letter  H.    See  hereafter,  chap.  xvi. 


1818.]  PRETENDED    RESERVATION    OF   BRITISH    RIGHTS. 


311 


ment : "  the  plenipotentiaries  add  that  "  this  instruction  was  ex- 
ecuted verbally  by  the  person  to  whom  it  was  addressed."  The 
other  document  purports  to  be  a  copy  of  the  despatch  from  Lord 
Bathurst  to  the  partneiB  of  the  North- West  Company,  mentioned  in 
the  Act  of  Delivery,  presented  by  Messrs.  Keith  and  Hickey,  direct- 
ing them  to  restore  the  post  on  the  Columbia,  ''  in  pursuance  of  the 
first  article  of  the  treaty  of  Ghent,"  in  which  the  words  '•  without, 
however,  admitting  the  right  of  that  government  to  the  postesaion  in 
question  "  appear  in  a  parenthesis.*  'J 

Without  inquiring,  at  present,  whether  or  not  Astoria  was  a 
national  possession  of  the  United  States,  agreeably  to  the  rules  and 
definitions  laid  down  by  writers  on  national  law,  there  can  be  no 
difiiculty  in  showing  that  it  was  such  according  to  the  principles  and 
practice  of  Great  Britain;  and  for  that  purpose,  :1  is  necessary 
merely  to  refer  to  the  circumstances  attending  the  dispute  between 
that  power  and  Spain,  in  1790,  when  the  British  government  re- 
quired from  Spain  the  surrender  of  a  territory  discovered  by  her 
navigators,  and  occupied  by  her  forces,  on  the  ground  that  it  had, 
previous  to  such  occupation,  become  the  property  of  British  sub- 
jects. Whether  Astoria  was  a  military  post  or  not,  could  be  of  no 
consequence,  as  the  treaty  of  Ghent  provides  for  the  restoration  of 
"all  territory,  places,  and  possessions,  whatsoever,  taken  by  either 
party  from  the  other,  during  the  war,"  except  those  on  the  Atlantic 
side  of  America  specially  named;  and  that  the  establishments  on 
the  Columbia  were  so  taken  by  the  British  during  war,  has  been 
sufficiently  proved.  The  right  of  the  United  States  to  make  settle- 
ments on  the  Columbia,  existed  previous  to  the  foundation  of  As- 
toria, in  virtue  of  the  discoveries  and  explorations  of  their  private 
citizens  and  public  officers ;  and  that  right  could  not  be  lessened, 
by  any  subsequent  acts  of  their  citizens,  without  the  consent  of 
their  government.     The  agent^i  of  the  Pacific  Company,  in  *?xpec- 

*  The  following  is  a  copy  of  this  despatch,  as  given  in  the  British  statement,  which 
will  be  found  among  the  Proofs  and  Illustrations,  in  the  latter  part  of  this  volume, 
under  the  letter  H :  — 

"Downing  Str£et,  Janttary  2)th,  1818. 

"Intelligence  having  been  received,  that  the  United  States  sloop  of  war  Ontario 
has  been  sent  by  the  American  government  to  establish  a  settlement  on  the  Colun?  jia 
River,  which  was  held  by  that  State  on  the  breaking  out  of  the  last  war,  I  am  to 
acquaint  you  that  it  is  the  Prince  Regent's  pleasure,  (without,  however,  admitting  the 
right  of  that  government  to  the  possession  in  question,)  that,  in  pursuance  of  the  first 
article  of  the  treaty  of  Ghent,  due  facility  should  be  given  to  the  reoccupation  of  the 
said  settlement  by  the  officers  of  the  United  States ;  and  I  am  to  desire  that  you 
would  contribute,  as  much  as  lies  in  ycftir  power,  to  the  execution  of  his  Royal  High- 
new's  commands.    I  have,  &c.  &c., 

"Bathurst." 


I 


I*!    ' 


312 


BRITISH    VIEWS    OF    NATIONAL    FAITH. 


[1818. 


tation  of  the  arrival  of  an  overpowering  British  force,  sold  their 
«  ettablishmenti,  fun,  and  $tock  in  hand,"  to  the  North- West  Com- 
pany ;  but  they  did  not,  nor  could  they,  alienate  the  right  of  domain 
of  the  United  States,  which  continued  as  before  that  transaction 
until  the  British  forces  arrived,  and  took  possession  of  the  country 
by  right  of  conquest.  The  same  circumstances  might  have  oc- 
curred with  regard  to  places  near  the  head  of  the  Mississippi,  or  in 
Maine ;  and  Great  Britain  would  not  have  been  bound  more  strong- 
ly by  the  treaty  of  Ghent  to  restore  places  so  situated  than  to  restore 
the  establishments  on  the  Columbia. 

The  two  documents,  which  the  British  plenipotentiaries  consider 
as  putting  "  the  case  of  the  restoration  of  Astoria  in  too  clear  a 
light  to  require  further  observation,"  are  wholly  inadmissible  as  evi- 
dence in  ''  the  case,"  being  simply  despatches  from  British  ministers 
to  their  own  agents,  intended  exclusively  for  the  instruction  of  the 
latter,  and  with  which  the  United  States  have  no  more  conctirn  than 
with  the  private  opinions  of  those  ministers.  The  attempt  to  rep- 
resent such  communications  as  reservations  of  right  on  the  part  of 
Great  Britain  to  the  very  territory  which  she  was  then  in  the  act  of 
restoring  to  ihe  United  States,  expressedly  in  pursuance  of  a  treaty, 
is  alike  at  variance  with  the  common  sense  and  the  common  morals 
of  the  day ;  and  no  arguments  are  required  to  show  that,  if  such 
reservations  were  allowable,  all  engagements  between  nations  would 
be  nugatory,  and  all  faith  at  an  end.  The  statement  respecting 
the  assertion  of  the  British  claim  to  Astoria,  verbally  made  by  Mr. 
Bagot  to  Mr.  Adams,  is  incomplete ;  for,  as  Mr.  Gallatin  justly  ob- 
served in  answer,  "  it  is  not  stated  how  the  communication  was  re- 
ceived, nor  whether  the  American  government  consented  to  accept 
the  restitution  with  the  reservation,  as  expressed  in  the  despatch  to 
the  envoy ; "  *  and  it  is,  moreover,  by  no  means  consonant  with  the 
usages  of  diplomatic  intercourse  at  the  present  day,  to  treat  verbally 
on  questions  so  important  as  those  of  territorial  sovereignty,  or  to 

*  Mr.  Grallatin's  Counter-Statement,  accompanpng  the  president's  message  to  Con- 
gress of  December  12th,  1827.  Upon  the  subject  of  this  verbal  communication,  the 
following  may  be  found  in  Mr.  Adams's  despatch  to  Mr.  Rush,  of  July  22d,  1833, 
accompanying  the  same  message :  — 

"  Previous  to  the  restoration  of  the  settlement  at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  River, 
in  1818,  and  again,  upon  the  first  introduction  in  Congress  of  the  plan  for  constituting 
a  territorial  government  there,  some  disposition  was  manifested,  by  Sir  Charles  Bagot 
and  Mr.  [Stratford]  Canning,  to  dispute  the  right  of  the  United  States  to  that  estab- 
lishment, and  some  vague  intimation  was  given  of  the  British  claims  on  tlie  north- 
west coast.  The  restoration  of  the  place,  and  the  convention  of  1818,  were  consid- 
ered as  a  final  disposal  of  Mr.  Bagot's  objections,  and  Mr.  Canning  declined 
committing  to  naper  those  which  he  hod  intimated  in  conversation." 


[1818. 

t,  sold  their 
•West  Com- 
ht  of  domain 
I  transaction 
the  country 
rht  have  oo- 
rissippi,  or  in 
more  strong- 
lan  to  restore 

uries  consider 
1  too  clear  a 
lissible  as  evi- 
itish  ministers 
ruction  of  the 
5  concern  than 
ttempt  to  rep- 
on  the  part  of 
n  in  the  act  of 
nee  of  a  treaty, 
;ommon  morals 
w  that,  if  such 
I  nations  would 
lent  respecting 
,  made  by  Mr. 
[latin  justly  ob- 
[ication  was  re- 
jnted  to  accept 
Lhe  despatch  to 
jonant  with  the 
to  treat  verbally 
Ivereignty,  or  to 

k's  message  to  Con- 
Communication,  the 
[of  July  22d,  1823, 

he  Columbia  River, 
Wan  for  constituting 
I  Sir  Charles  Bagot 
itates  to  that  estab- 
[aims  on  the  north- 
\  1818,  were  consid- 
Canning  declined 
Ition." 


1818.] 


BRITISH    VIEWS    OF    NATIONAL    FAITH. 


313 


consider  as  sufficient,  protests  and  exceptions  made  in  that  manner, 
and  brought  forward  long  after,  without  acknowledgment  of  any 
kind  on  the  part  of  those  to  whom  they  are  said  to  have  been  ad- 
dressed. The  only  communication  received  by  the  American  gov- 
ernment, on  the  occasion  of  the  restitution  of  Astoria,  is  explicit : 
"  We,  the  undersigned,  do,  in  conformity  to  the  first  article  of  the 
treaty  of  Ghent,  restore  to  the  government  of  the  United  ^States  the 
settlement  of  Fort  George,  on  the  Columbia  River;  "  and  this  direct 
and  unqualified  recognition  of  the  right  of  the  United  States  cannot 
be  affected  by  subsequent  communications  to  or  frorn  any  persons. 

It  may  also  be  remarked,  that  although  the  British  government, 
in  1826,  pronounced  as  sufficient  a  reservation  contained  in  a  secret 
despatch  from  one  of  its  own  ministers  to  one  of  its  own  agents,  and 
withheld  from  the  other  party  interested  in  the  matter,  yet,  in  1834, 
the  same  government  pronounced  the  reservation  contained  in  the 
Declaration  publicly  presented  by  the  Spanish  ambassador  at  Lon- 
don, in  1771,  on  the  conclusion  of  the  dispute  respecting  the  Falk- 
land Islands,  "  not  to  possess  any  substantial  weight,"  *  inasmuch  as 
it  had  not  been  noticed  in  the  Acceptance  presented  by  the  British 

>.  ^rnment  in  return.     The  circumstances  connected  with  the  last- 

Ciitioned  transaction  have  been  already  so  fully  exposed,  that  it 
is  unnecessary  to  repeat  them  here. 

Immediately  after  the  conclusion  of  the  surrender  of  Astoria, 
Mr.  Keith  presented  to  Mr.  Prevost  a  note  containing  inquiries  — 
whether  or  not  the  government  of  the  United  States  would  insist 
upon  the  abandonment  of  the  post  by  the  North- West  Company ,f 
before  the  final  decision  of  the  question  as  to  the  right  of  sove- 
reignty over  the  country ;  and  whether,  in  the  event  of  such  a 

*  Letter  from  Viscount  Palmerston  to  Seiior  Moreno,  envoy  of  Buenos  Ayres 
at  London,  dated  January  8th,  1834.  See  the  note  in  p.  Ill,  containing  a  sketch  of 
the  circumstances  of  the  dispute  respecting  the  Falkland  Islands. 

t  The  buildings,  and,  indeed,  the  whole  establishment  at  Astoria,  had  been  consid- 
erably increased,  since  it  came  into  the  hands  of  the  North- West  Company.  Accord 
ing  to  the  plan  and  description  of  the  place  sent  by  Mr.  Prevost  to  Washington,  the 
factory  consisted,  in  1818,  of  a  stockade  made  of  pine  logs,  twelve  feet  in  length 
above  the  ground,  enclosing  a  parallelogram  of  one  hundred  and  flfly  by  two  Imndred 
and  fifty  feet,  extending  in  its  greatest  length  from  north-west  to  south-east,  and 
defended  by  bastions  or  lowers  at  two  opposite  angles.  Within  this  enclosure  were 
all  the  buildings  of  the  establishment,  such  as  dwelling-houses,  magazines,  store- 
houses, mechanics'  shops,  &c.  The  artillery  were  two  heavy  eighteen-pounders, 
six  six-pounders,  four  four-pound  carronades,  two  six-pound  cohorns,  and  seven 
swivels,  all  mounted.  The  number  of  persons  attached  to  the  place,  besides  a  few 
women  and  children,  was  jixty-five,  of  whom  twenty-three  were  whites,  twenty-six 
Sandwich  Islanders,  (or  Kanakis^aa  they  nre  generally  called  in  the  Pacific,)  and 
the  remainder  persona  of  mixed  blood,  from  Canada. 

40 


i>l:  I 


'    i,' 

% 


11 


314 


NEGOTIATION    AT   LONDON. 


■\;A 


[1818. 


w  r 


deciuon  being  in  ^avor  of  the  United  States,  their  government 
wou'.d  be  di8po.ied  to  indemnify  the  North- West  Company  for  any 
improvements  which  they  might,  in  the  mean  time,  have  made  there. 
On  these  points,  Mr.  Prevost,  having  no  instructions,  could  only 
reply,  as  he  did,  to  the  effect  —  that  his  government  would,  doubtless, 
if  it  should  determine  to  keep  up  the  settlement,  satisfy  any  claims  of 
the  North- West  Company  which  might  be  conformable  with  justice 
and  the  usages  of  civilized  nations.  After  a  few  days  more  spent 
on  the  Columbia,  the  Blossom  quitted  the  river  with  Mr.  Prevost, 
whom  she  carried  to  Peru,  the  post  remaining  iki  the  hands  of  tie 
British  traders,  who  have  ever  since  continued  to  occupy  it. 

Whilst  these  measures  for  the  restitution  of  Astoria  were  in 
progress,  a  negotiation  was  carried  on,  at  London,  between  i.\e 
plenipotentia.  ics  of  the  American  and  British  governments,  for  the 
definitive  arrangement  of  many  questions  which  were  left  unsettled 
by  the  treaty  of  Ghent,  including  those  relating  to  the  boundaries 
of  the  territories  of  the  two  nations  west  of  the  Lake  of  the  Woods.* 
Messrs.  Rush  and  Gallatin,  the  plenipotentiaries  of  the  United 
States,  proposed  —  that  the  dividing  line  between  those  territories 
should  be  drawn  from  the  north-western  extremity  of  that  lake, 
north  or  south,  as  the  case  might  require,  to  the  49th  parallel 
of  latitude,  and  thence  along  that  parallel  west  to  the  Pacilic 
Ocean.  The  British  commissioners,  Messrs.  Goulburn  and  Hobin- 
son,  after  a  discussion  in  which  they  endeavored  to  secure  to  British 
subjects  the  right  of  access  to  the  Mississippi,  and  of  navigating 
that  river,  agreed  to  admit  the  line  proposed  as  far  west  as  the 
Rocky  Mountains;  and  an  article  to  that  effect  was  accordingly 
inserted  m  the  projet  of  a  convention. 

The  claims  of  the  respective  nations  to  territories  west  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  were  then  considered.  Messrs.  Rush  and  Galla- 
tin "  did  not  assert  that  the  United  States  had  a  perfect  right  to  that 
country,  but  insisted  that  their  claim  was  at  least  good  against  Great 
Britain ;  "  and  they  cited,  in  support  of  that  claim,  the  facts  of  the 
discovery  of  the  Columbia  River,  of  the  first  exploration  from  its 
sources  to  its  mouth,  and  of  the  formation  of  the  first  establishments 
in  the  country  through  which  it  flows,  by  American  citizens. 
Messrs.  Goulburn  and  Robinson,  on  the  other  hand,  affirmed  "  that 
former  voyages,  and  principally  that  of  Captain  Cook,  gave  to 
Great  Britain  ihe  rights  derived  from  discovery ;  and  they  alluded  to 

*  President  Monroe's  message  to  CongresB,  with  the  accompanying  documents, 
Bont  December  29t.h,  1B18. 


h.% 


1818.]     CONVENTION    OF    UNITED    STATES   AND    GREAT   BRITAIN.     315 

r 

purchases  from  the  natives  south  of  the  Columbia,  which  they 
alleged  to  have  been  made  prior  to  the  American  revolution. 
They  did  not  make  any  formal  proposition  for  a  boundary,  but 
intimated  that  the  river  itself  was  the  most  convenient  which  could 
be  adopted ;  and  that  they  would  not  agree  to  any  which  did  not 
give  them  the  harbor  at  the  mouth  of  that  river,  in  common  with 
the  United  States." 

It  is  needless  here  to  repeat  the  proofs  that  Cook  saw  no  part  of 
the  west  coast  of  America  south  of  Mount  San  Jacinto,  near  the 
57th  degree  of  latitude,  which  had  not  been  already  explored  by 
the  Spaniards ;  with  regard  to  the  purchases  from  the  natives 
south  of  the  Columbia,  alleged  to  have  been  made  by  British 
subjects  prior  to  the  revolution,  history  is  entirely  silent.  The  de- 
termination expressed  on  the  part  of  the  British  government  not  to 
assent  to  any  arrangement  which  did  not  give  to  Great  Britain  the 
mouth  of  the  Columbia,  was  at  least  unequivocal,  and  was  sufficient 
to  show  that  all  arguments  on  the  American  side  would  be  unavailing. 
It  was,  accordingly,  at  length  agreed  that  all  territories  and  their 
waters,  claimed  by  either  power,  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
should  be  free  and  open  to  the  vessels,  citizens,  and  subjects,  of 
both  for  the  space  of  ten  years ;  provided,  however,  that  no  claim 
of  either,  or  of  any  other  nation,  to  any  part  of  those  territories, 
should  be  prejudiced  by  the  arrangement. 

This  convention  having  been  completed,  it  was  signed  by  the 
plenipotentiaries  on  the  20th  of  October,  1813,  and  was  soon  after 
ratified  by  the  governments  of  both  nations.*  The  compromise 
contained  in  its  third  article,  with  regard  to  the  territories  west  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  was,  perhaps,  ihe  most  wise,  as  well  as  the 
most  equitable,  measure  which  could  have  been  adopted  at  that 
time  ;  considering  that  neither  party  pretended  to  possess  a  perfect 
title  to  the  sovereignty  of  any  of  th'  b  territories,  and  that  there 
was  no  prospect  of  the  speedy  conclusion  of  any  arrangement  with 
regtrd  to  them,  between  either  party  and  the  other  claimants, 
Spain  and  Russia.  The  agreement  could  not  certainly,  at  the 
time,  have  been  considered  unfavorable  to  the  United  States ;  for, 
although  the  North- West  Company  held  the  whole  trade  of  the 
Columbia  country,  yet  the  important  post  at  the  mouth  of  that 
river  was  restored  to  the  Americans  without  reservation,  and  there 
was  every  reason  for  supposing  that  it  would  be  immediately  re- 

•  See  the  third  article  of  the  convention  of  October,  18i8,  among  the  Proofs  and 
niustrations,  in  the  latter  part  of  this  History,  under  the  letter  K,  No.  2. 


i 


'I ' 

m 


» ■■■• 


U^  i 


If 


316  TLORIDA   TREATY    BETWEEN    U.    STATES    AND    SPAIN.      [1818. 


occupied  by  its  founders :  and  it  seemed,  moreover,  evident  that 
the  citizens  of  the  United  States  would   enjoy  many  and   great 
advantages  over  all  other  people  in  the  country  in  question,  in  con- 
sequence of  their  superior  facilities  of  access  to  it,  especially  since 
the  introduction  of  steam  vessels  on  the  Mississippi  and  its  branches. 
In  the  same  year,  a  negotiation  was  carried  on  at  Washington, 
between  the  governments  of  the  United  States  and  Spain,  in  which 
the  question  of  boundaries  on  the  north-west  side  of  America  was 
likewise    discussed.     The  Spanish   minister,   Don  Luis  de  Onis, 
began  by  declaring  that  "  the  right  and  dominion  of  the  crown  of 
Spain  to  the  north-west  coast  of  America  as  high  as  the  Californias, 
is  certain  and  indisputable  ;  the  Spaniards  having  explored  it  as  far 
as  the  47th  degree,  in  the  expedition  under  Juan  de  Fuca,  in  1592, 
and  in  that  under  Admiral  Font6,  to  the  55th  degree,  in  1640.    The 
dominion  of  Spain  in  these  vast  regions  being  thus  established,  and 
her  rights  of  discovery,  conquest,  and  possession,  being  never  dis- 
puted, she  could  scarcely  possess  a  property  founded  on  more  re- 
spectable principles,  whether  of  the  law  of  nations,  of  public  law,  or 
of  any  others  which  serve  as  a  basis  to  such  acquisitions  as  compose 
all  the  independent  kingdoms  and  states  of  the  earth."     Upon  these 
positive  assertions,  the  American  plenipotentiary,  Mr.  J.  Q.  Adams, 
secretary  of  state,  did  not  consider  himself  required  to  offer  any 
comment ;  and  the  origin,  extent,  and  value,  of  the  claims  of  Spain 
to  the  north-western  portion  of  America  remained  unquestioned 
during  the  discussion.     The  negotiation  was  broken  off  in  the  early 
'  part  of  the  year,  soon  after  its  commencement ;  it  was,  however, 
renewed,  and  was  tenninated  on  the  22d  of  February,  1819,  by  a 
treaty  commonly  called  the  Florida  treaty,  in  which  the  soutiiern 
boundaries  of  the  United  States  were  definitively  fixed.     Spain 
ceH  d  Florida  to  the  American  republic,  which  relinquished  all 
claims  to  territories  west  of  the  River  Sabine,  and  south  of  the 
upper  parts  of  the  Red  and   the   Arkansas  Rivers;   and  it  was 
agreed  that  a  line  drawn  on  the  meridian  from  the  source  of  the 
Arkansas  northward  to  the  42d  parallel  of  latitude,  and   thence 
along   that   parallel   westward   to   the   Pacific,   should    form    the 
northern  boundary  of  the  Spanish  possessions,  and  the  southern 
boundary  of  those  of  the  United  States,  in  that  quarter,  —  "  His 
Catholic  majesty  ceding  to  the  United  States  all  his  rights,  claims, 
and  pretensions,  to  any  territories  north  of  the  said  line." 

The  provisions  of  this  treaty,  particularly  those  relating  to  limits, 
appear  to  have  been  as  nearly  just  as  any  which  could  have  been 


1819.]       FLORIDA   TREATY    BETWEEN    THE    U.  S.    \ND    SPAIN.  317 

framed  under  existing  circumstances;  and  us  an  almost  necessary 
consequence,  they  were  not  received  with  general  satisfaction  by 
either  nation.  The  Americans  insisted  that  the  Rio  del  Norte  should 
have  been  made  the  boundary  of  their  republic  in  the  south-west, 
so  as  to  secure  to  it  the  possession  of  the  vast  and  fertile  region  of 
Texas,  which  they  claimed  as  originally  forming  part  of  Louisiana ; 
whilst  the  Spaniards  protested  that  their  interests  in  the  new  world 
had  been  sacrificed  by  the  surrender  of  Florida  to  the  power  most 
dangerous  to  them  in  that  quarter.  The  Spanish  government, 
which  was  then  in  the  hands  of  the  Cortes,  withheld  its  ratification 
of  the  treaty  for  nearly  two  yearo ;  and  within  a  year  after  that 
ratification  had  been  given,  the  authority  of  Spain  wa»  extin- 
guished in  every  portion  of  America  contiguous  to  the  new  line  of 
boundary.* 

With  regard  to  the  extent  of  the  territory  west  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  and  the  validity  of  the  title  to  it  thus  acquired  by  the 
United  States,  it  will  be  convenient  here  to  introduce  some  ob- 
servations. 

*  See  the  third  article  of  the  treaty  of  1819,  defining  the  boundary,  as  settled,  in 
the  Proofs  and  Illustrations,  under  the  Letter  K,  No.  6.  The  correspondence  which 
passed  during  the  negotiation  may  be  found  accompanying  Prei>'dent  Monroe's  mes- 
sage to  Congress  of  February  22d,  1819.  Great  skill  and  knowledge  of  the  subject  are 
displayed  by  each  of  the  plenipotentiaries  in  this  correspondence  ;  the  Chevalier  de 
Onis  occasionally  employing  that  finesse  which  was  considered  as  the  principal 
weapon  of  the  diplomatist  of  the  last  centuries,  while  Mr.  Adams,  in  addition  to  his 
superior  acquaintance  with  history  and  national  law,  impresses  upon  the  reader  his 
profound  conviction  of  the  justice  of  his  cause. 

The  Spanish  plenipotentiary,  on  returning  to  his  country,  found  it  necessary  to 
vindicate  his  conduct  in  thi'  negotiation,  by  a  Memoir,  published  at  Madrid  in  1820, 
in  which  he  shows  that  b  was  by  no  means  convinced  of  the  right  of  Spain  to  the 
territory  west  of  the  Sabine  River ;  and  he  claims  especial  commendation  from  his 
government  for  this  part  of  the  treaty  of  1819,  "  which, "  he  says,  "  is  improperly 
styled  a  treaty  of  cession,  whereas  it  is  in  reality  one  of  exchange,  or  permutation,  of 
a  small  province  for  another  of  double  the  extent,  more  rich  and  fertile.  1  will 
agree,"  he  adds,  "  that  the  third  article  might,  with  greater  clearness,  have  been  ex- 
pressed thus :  '  In  exchange,  the  United  States  cede  to  his  Catholic  majesty  the  province 
of  Texas,'  &c. ;  but  as  I  had  been  for  three  years  maintaining,  in  the  lengthened  cor- 
respondence herein  inserted,  that  this  province  belonged  to  the  king,  it  would  have 
been  a  contradiction  to  express,  in  the  treaty,  that  the  United  States  cede  it  to  hia 
majesty." 

The  Chevalier  de  Onis,  however,  insinuates,  in  his  Memoir,  that  one  object  of  his 
long  correspondence  on  this  subject  was  to  gain  time.  In  fact,  during  the  summer 
of  1818,  while  the  correspondence  was  partially  suspended,  (with  the  same  object  of 
gaining  time,  no  doubt,)  the  Spanish  government  formally  applied  to  that  of  Great 
Britain  for  aid,  or  mediation,  in  the  affair;  to  which  Lord  Castlereagh  immediately 
returned  a  decided  negative,  at  the  same  time  advising  the  Spanish  government  to 
cede  Florida  to  the  United  States,  and  to  make  any  other  arrangement  which  might 
be  deemed  proper,  without  delay. 


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818 


DURATION    OF    THE    NOOTKA   CONVENTION. 


[1819. 


That  the  Nootka  convention  expired  on  the  declaration  of  war  by 
Spain  against  Great  Britain  in  1796,  and  could  not  have  been  after 
that  period  in  force,  except  in  virtue  of  a  distinct  and  formal  renewal 
by  the  same  parties  —  is  consonant  with  the  universal  practice  of  civ- 
ilized nations,  and  especially  of  Great  Britain,  as  manifested  during 
the  well-known  negotiations  between  her  government  and  that  of 
the  United  States,  in  1816,  respecting  the  Newfoundland  fishery. 
Mr.  Adams,  the  American  plenipotentiary,  on  that  occasion,  insisted 
that  his  countrymen  should  continue,  not  only  to  fish  on  the  Banks 
of  Newfoundland,  but  also  to  land  on  the  British  American  coasts 
for  the  same  purpose,  as  they  had  done  before  the  war  of  1812,  by 
the  treaty  of  1783,  although  that  treaty  had  not  been  renewed  by 
the  treaty  of  Ghent,  at  the  termination  of  the  war  —  upon  the  ground 
that  the  treaty  of  1 .33,  by  which  Great  Britain  acknowledged  the 
independence  of  the  United  States,  was  "  of  a  peculiar  nature,  and 
bore,  in  that  nature,  a  character  of  permanency,  not  subject,  like  many 
of  the  ordinary  contracts  between  independent  nations,  to  abrogation 
by  a  subsequent  war  between  the  same  parties."  To  this  the  British 
minister.  Lord  Bathurst,  answered,  that, "  if  the  United  States  derived 
from  the  treaty  of  1783  privileges  from  which  other  independent 
nations,  not  admitted  by  treaty,  were  excluded,  the  duration  of  those 
privileges  must  depend  on  the  duration  of  the  instrument  by  which 
they  were  granted ;  and  if  the  war  abrogated  the  treaty,  it  deter- 
mined the  privileges.  It  has  been  urged,  indeed,"  continues  his 
lordship,  "  on  the  part  of  the  United  States,  that  the  treaty  of  1783 
was  of  a  peculiar  nature,  and  that,  because  it  contained  a  recognition 
of  American  independence,  it  could  not  be  abrogated  by  a  subse- 
quent war  between  the  parties.  To  a  position  of  this  novel  nature 
Great  Britain  cannot  accede.  She  Icnows  of  no  exception  to  the  rule, 
that  all  treaties  are  put  an  end  to  by  a  subsequent  war  between  the 
same  parties :  she  cannot,  therefore,  consent  to  give  to  her  diplo- 
matic relations  with  one  state  a  different  degree  of  permanency 
from  that  on  which  her  connection  with  all  other  states  depends. 
Nor  can  she  consider  any  one  state  at  liberty  to  assign  to  a 
treaty,  made  with  her,  such  a  peculiarity  of  character,  as  shall 
make  it,  as  to  duration,  an  exception  to  all  other  treaties,  in  order 
to  found  on  a  peculiarity  thus  assumed  an  irrevocable  title  to  all 
indulgences  which  have  all  the  features  of  temporary  concessions." 
The  British  minister,  indeed,  admitted  that  recognitions  of  right 
in  a  treaty  might  be  considered  as  perpetual  obligations :  and,  refer- 
ring to  the  terms  of  the  treaty  of  1783,  he  showed  that  the  right  of 


1819.1 


THE    NOOTKA    CONVENTION    EXPIRED    IN    1796. 


319 


the  Americans  io  fish  on  the  banks  of  Newfoundland  (that  is  to  say, 
in  the  open  fea)  was  there  distinctly  acknowledged,  while  the  liberty 
to  use  the  British  coasts  for  the  same  purpose  was  conceded  to  them ; 
and  that,  although  the  right  subsisted  in  virtue  of  the  independence 
of  the  United  States,  the  liberty  expired  on  the  declaration  of  war 
in  1812,  and  could  not  again  be  enjoyed,  without  the  express  con- 
sent of  Great  Britain.  It  may  be  added  that  the  position  thus 
assumed  by  the  British  government  was  maintained  throughout  the 
negotiation ;  at  the  end  of  which,  the  liberty  to  take  and  cure  fish 
on  certain  parts  of  the  British  American  coasts,  so  long  as  they 
should  remain  unsettled,  was  secured  to  the  citizens  of  the  United 
States,  in  common  with  British  subjects,  forever,  by  the  first  article 
of  the  convention  of  October  20th,  1818.* 

Applying  to  the  Nootka  convention  the  rule  thus  enforced  by 
Great  Britain  in  1815,  with  all  its  exceptions  in  their  widest  sense, 
there  can  be  no  question  that  this  compact  was  entirely  abrogated 
by  the  war  between  that  power  and  Spain,  begun  in  October,  1796. 
On  analyzing  the  convention,  it  will  be  seen  that  the  Jirst,  second, 
and  eighth  articles  relate  exclusively  to  certain  acts,  which  were  to 
be  forthwith  performed  by  one  or  both  of  the  parties,  and  which 
having  been  performed,  as  they  all  were,  before  1796,  those  articles 
became  dead  letters.  By  the  third  article,  "  it  is  agreed,  in  order  to 
strengthen  the  bonds  of  friendship,  and  to  preserve,  in  future,  a  perfect 
harmony  and  good  understanding  between  the  two  contracting  parties," 
that  their  respective  subjects  shall  not  be  disturbed  or  molested  in 
navigating  or  fishing  in  the  Pacific  or  Southern  Oceans,  or  in  land- 
ing on  the  coasts  of  those  seas  in  places  not  already  occupied,  "for 
the  purpose  of  carrying  on  their  commerce  with  the  natives  cf  the 
country,  or  of  making  settlements  there ; "  under  certain  restrictions, 
nevertheless,  to  the  specification  of  which  the  fourth,  ffth,  and 
mih  articles  are  entirely  devoted:  the  remaining  seventh  article 
merely  indicating  the  course  to  be  pursued  in  cases  of  infraction  of 
the  others.  The  Nootka  convention  thus  contains  nothing  which 
can  be  construed  as  a  perpetual  obligation,  no  assertion  or  recogni- 
tion of  right,  which  can  be  deemed  irrevocable ;  but  is,  as  a  whole, 
and  in  each  of  its  separate  stipulations,  a  concession ,  or  series  of 
concessions.  To  navigate  and  fish  in  the  open  sea,  and  to  trade 
and  settle  on  coasts  unoccupied  by  any  civilized  nation,  are  indeed 
riglts  claimed  by  all  civilized  nations:    Spain,  however,  did  not 

*  Correspondence  annexed  to  President  Monroe's  message  to  Congress  of  Decem- 
t!«  29th,  1818. 


m 


~ 


320 


THE    NOOTKA   CONVENTION    EXPIRED    IN    1796.  [1819. 


"!|-l 


acknowledge  these  rights  as  existing  in  any  other  power  with 
regard  to  the  Pacific  and  Southern  Oceans  and  their  American 
coasts;  and,  by  the  Nootka  convention,  she  merely  engaged  to 
desist  from  the  exercise  of  privileges  claimed  by  her  in  those  seas 
and  coasts,  so  far  as  British  subjects  might  be  affected  by  them, 
on  condition  that  Great  Britain  should  desist  from  the  exercise  of 
privileges  claimed  by  her,  in  the  same  quarters  of  the  world.  After 
the  abrogation  of  the  convention  hy  war,  each  nation  might  again 
assert  and  exercise  the  privileges  claimed  by  it  before  the  conclusion 
of  the  compact  *,  and  neither  could  be  regarded  us  bound  by  any 
of  the  restrictions  defined  in  that  instrument,  until  they  had  been 
formally  renewed  by  express  consent  of  both  the  original  parties. 

The  war  begun  by  Spain  against  Great  Britain,  in  1796,  con- 
tinued, with  the  intermission  of  the  two  years  of  uncertainty  suc- 
ceeding the  peace  of  Amiens,  until  1809,  when  those  nations  were 
again  allied,  in  opposition  to  France.  Since  that  period,  they  have 
remained  constantly  at  peace  with  each  other.  The  only  engage- 
ment made  between  them  for  the  renewal  of  treaties  subsisting 
before  1796,  is  contained  in  the  first  of  the  three  additional  articles 
to  the  treaty  of  Madrid,  signed  on  the  24th  of  August,  1814,  wherein 
"  It  is  agreed  that,  pending  the  negotiation  of  a  new  treaty  of  com- 
merce, Great  Britain  shall  be  admitted  to  trade  with  Spain,  upon  the 
same  conditions  as  those  which  existed  previously  to  1796 ;  all  the 
treaties  of  commerce,  which  at  that  period  subsisted  between  the  two 
nations,  being  hereby  ratified  and  confirmed."  Thus  the  Nootka 
convention  could  not  have  been  in  force  at  any  time  between  Octo- 
ber, 1796,  and  August,  1814;  nor  since  that  period,  unless  it  were 
renewed  by  the  additional  article  above  quoted.  That  the  6rst  part 
of  this  article  related  only  to  trade  between  the  European  dominions 
of  Great  Britain  and  Spain,  is  certain,  because  no  trade  had  ever 
been  allowed,  by  treaty  or  otherwise,  between  either  kingdom,  or  its 
colonies,  and  the  colonies  of  the  other,  except  in  the  single  case  of 
the  ^siento,  concluded  in  1713,  and  abrogated  in  1740,  agreeably 
to  which  the  British  South  Sea  Company  supplied  the  Spanish 
colonies  with  negro  slaves  during  that  period ;  and  because,  more- 
over, by  an  article  in  the  treaty  of  Madrid,  to  which  the  above- 
quoted  article  is  additional,  ^^  In  the  event  of  the  commerce  of  the 
Spanish  American  cohnies  being  opened  to  foreign  nations,  his 
Catholic  majesty  promises  that  Great  Britain  shall  be  admitted  to 
trade  with  those  possessions,  as  the  most  favored  nation"  The  second 
part  of  the  additional  article  is  evidently  intended  merely  in  confir- 


1819.]  THC    NOOTKA   CONVCNTION    EXPIRED    IN    1796. 


aai 


mation  and  completiun  of  the  first,  which  would  otherwise  have  want- 
ed the  requisite  degree  of  precision ;  and  it  certainly  could  not  have 
embmced  the  convention  of  1790,  except  so  far  as  related  to  the 
commerce  of  each  of  the  parties  on  the  unoccupied  coasts  of  Amer- 
ica, and  the  settlements  made  by  each  for  that  special  purpose. 

Had  the  convention  of  1790  been  expressly  renewed  and  con- 
firmed in  1814,  it  would  still  have  been  inoperative,  except  with 
regard  to  subjects  and  establishments  of  the  contracting  parties. 
The  governments  of  Groat  Britain  and  Spain  might  have  again 
agreed  that  their  subjects  should  reciprocally  enjoy  liberty  of  access 
and  trade,  in  all  establiahmetits  which  either  might  form  on  the 
north-west  coasts  of  America ;  but  neither  power  could  have  claimed 
such  rights  in  places  on  those  coasts  then  occupied  by  a  third  nation. 

It  has  been  already  shown  that,  after  the  afa«indonment  of  Nootka 
Sound  by  the  Spaniards,  in  March,  1795,  no  settlement  was  made, 
or  attempted,  by  them  in  any  of  the  countries  on  the  western  side 
of  America  north  of  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco ;  and  that,  during 
the  period  between  that  year  and  1814,  many  establishments  were 
formed  in  those  countries  by  Russians,  British,  and  citizens  of  the 
United  States.  The  Russians  extended  their  posts  from  Aliaska 
eastward  to  Sitka,  and  even  fixed  themselves  within  a  few  miles  of 
the  Bay  of  San  Francisco.  The  British  founded  their  first  establish- 
ment west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  in  1806,  on  the  upper  waters 
of  Fraser's  River,  near  tliu  54th  degree  of  latitude.  The  Columbia 
was  surveyed  by  order  of  the  government  of  the  United  States,  wiiu 
a  view  to  its  occupation,  in  1805 ;  and  their  citizens  made  estab- 
lishments on  that  river  successively  in  1808,  1810,  and  1811,  of 
which  the  principal  were,  in  1813,  taken  by  the  British,  and  in 
1818,  restored  to  the  Americans,  agreeably  to  the  treaty  of  Ghent. 
Under  such  circumstances,  the  title  of  Spain  to  the  countries  north 
of  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco,  however  strong  it  may  have  been  in 
1790  or  1796,  in  virtue  of  discoveries  and  settlements,  must  be 
allowed  to  have  become  considerably  weaker  in  1819,  from  disuse, 
and  from  submission  to  the  acts  of  occupation  by  other  powers. 
Thus,  whilst  it  may  be  doubted  that  either  of  those  powers  could 
in  justice  claim  the  sovereignty  of  the  country  occupied  by  its  sub- 
jects without  the  consent  of  Spain,  the  latter  could  not  have  claimed 
the  exclusive  possession  of  such  country,  or  have  entered  into  com- 
pacts with  a  third  power,  respecting  trade,  navigation,  or  settlement, 
in  it,  agreeably  to  any  recognized  principle  of  national  law.  Still 
less  could  Great  Britain  have  claimed  the  right  to  exclude  other 
41 


il!'^ : 


■ft:     '- 


:i 


m 


i 

HI 

Tpl 

iiiiliiliwi     1 

HH    I 

WH   m 

i3*!^^ 


!  I'M  I 


383 


LONfl's    EXPEDITION   TO  THE   ROCKY   MOUNTAINS.        [1819. 


nations  from  the  sovereignty  of  the  regions  traversed  by  the  Co- 
lumbia, in  which  her  subjects  had  made  no  discoveries,  and  which 
had  'jeen  first  occupied  by  the  United  States,  unless  upon  the 
ground  of  conquest  during  war ;  and  this  ground  became  untenable 
after  the  treaty  of  Ghent,  as  distinctly  acknowledged  by  the  British 
government  in  the  fact  of  the  restoration  of  Astoria. 

Thus,  whibt  the  title  to  the  countries  north  of  the  43d  parallel 
of  latitude,  derived  by  the  United  States  from  Spain,  through  the 
Florida  treaty,  was  undoubtedly  imperfect,  —  though  not  from  any 
possible  oflfect  of  the  Nootka  convention,  as  insisted  by  the  British 
government  in  1826,  —  yet  that  title,  in  addition  to  those  previously 
possessed  by  the  Americans,  in  virtue  of  their  discoveries  and  set- 
tlements in  the  Columbia  countries,  appears  to  constitute  a  right  in 
their  favor,  stronger  than  could  be  alleged  by  any  other  nation,  if 
not  counting  to  an  absolute  right  of  sovereignty. 

Immediately  after  the  signature  of  the  Florida  treaty,  an  expedi- 
tion for  the  purpose  of  examining  the  country  drained  by  the  Mis- 
souri and  its  branches  was  organized  by  Mr.  Calhoun,  then  secre- 
tary of  war  of  the  United  States,  who  had  been,  for  some  time  pre- 
vious, assiduously  endeavoring  to  regulate  the  intercourse  with  the 
Indians,''*'  and  to  extend  the  military  posts  of  the  United  States 
through  those  regions.  The  party,  comprising  a  largo  number  of 
officers  and  men  of  science,  passed  the  summer  of  1819  in  exam- 
ining the  Lower  Missouri,  and  the  following  winter  in  cantonment 
at  Council  BlufTs,  on  the  west  side  of  that  river,  eight  hundred  and 
fifty  miles  above  its  junction  with  the  Mississippi.  In  June  of  the 
following  year  they  proceeded  up  the  valley  of  the  Platte,  to  the 
confluence  of  its  north  and  south  branches  or  forks,  and  then 
continued  along  the  south  fork,  to  its  sources  in  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, near  the  40th  degree  of  latitude.  Here  Dr.  James,  the  bota- 
nist of  the  expedition,  ascended  a  mountain,  named  after  him  James's 
Peak,  the  height  of  which  was  estimated,  though  on  data  by  no 


*  See  Mr.  Calhoun's  report  on  this  subject  to  the  House  of  Representatives,  dated 
December  5th,  1818,  in  which  he  reviews  the  system  of  intercourse  with  the  Indians 
then  pursued,  and  recommends,  as  the  only  means  of  protecting  them  against  the  cu- 
pidity of  the  traders,  and  of  securing  the  United  States  against  the  deleterious  influ- 
ence exercised  over  those  people  by  the  British  trading  companies,  that  the  whole 
trade  in  the  regions  beyond  the  organized  states  and  territoriea  of  the  Union  should 
be  vested,  for  twenty  years,  in  a  company,  subject  to  such  regulations  as  might  be 
prescribed  by  law.  This  document  merits  attention,  from  the  accuracy  of  the  details 
and  the  force  of  the  reasoning ;  and  we  may  now  regret  that  the  plan  proponed  by 
Mr.  Calhoun  was  not  carried  into  effect. 


1820.]     STERILITT   or   THE    CENTRAL    REGIONS    Or    AMERICA.  3S8 


ity,  an  expedi- 
id  by  the  Mis- 
in,  then  secre- 
iome  time  pre- 
ioune  with  the 
United  States 
Tgo  number  of 
819  in  exam- 
in  cantonment 
it  hundred  and 
n  June  of  the 
Platte,  to  the 
rks,  and   then 
Rocky  Moun- 
mes,  the  bota- 
Ler  him  Jamt's 
n  data  by  no 


means  sufficient,  at  not  less  than  eight  thousand  five  hundred  feet 
above  the  ocean  level ;  and  then,  striking  the  head-waters  of  the 
Arkansas,  which  also  flows  from  the  same  mountain,  they  de- 
scended the  valley  of  that  river  to  its  junction  with  the  Mississippi. 
Much  information  was  obtained,  through  this  expedition,  respect* 
ing  the  geogruphy,  natural  history,  and  aboriginal  inhabitants,  of 
the  countries  traversed,  all  of  which  was  communicated  to  the 
world  in  an  exact  and  perspicuous  narrative,  published  by  Dr. 
James  in  1823.  One  most  important  fact,  in  a  political  point  of 
view,  was  completely  established  by  the  observations  of  the  party ; 
namely,  that  the  whole  division  of  North  America,  drained  b/  the 
Missouri  and  the  Arkansas,  and  their  tributaries,  between  the 
meridian  of  the  mouth  of  the  Platte  and  th.  Rocky  Mountains,  is 
almost  entirely  unfit  for  cultivation,  and  therefore  uninhabitable  by 
a  people  depending  upon  agriculture  for  their  subsistence.  The 
portion  of  this  territory  within  five  hundred  u.iles  of  Jie  Roc!  y 
Mountains,  on  the  east,  extending  from  the  39th  to  the  49th  pat'  > 
iels  of  latitude,  was  indeed  found  to  be  a  desert  of  sand  a  ltd 
stones;  and  subsequent  observations  have  shown  tl; ;  adjoining 
regions,  to  a  great  distance  west  of  those  mountains  to  be  stiU 
more  arid  and  sterile.  These  circumstances,  as  they  became  known 
through  the  United  States,  rendered  the  people  and  their  repre- 
sentatives in  the  federal  legislature  more  and  more  indifferent  with 
regard  to  the  territories  on  the  north-western  side  of  the  continent. 
It  became  always  difficult,  and  generally  impossible,  to  engage  the 
attention  of  Congress  to  any  matters  connected  with  those  countries : 
emigrants  from  the  populous  states  of  the  Union  would  not  banish 
themselves  to  the  distant  shores  of  the  Pacific,  whilst  they  could 
obtain  the  best  lands  on  the  Mississippi  and  its  branches  at  mod- 
erate prices ;  and  capitalists  would  not  vet  their  funds  in  establish- 
ments for  the  administration  and  conti  *  .<^ '  possession  of  which 
they  could  have  no  guarantee.  From  1813  until  1823,  few,  if 
any,  American  citizens  were  employed  in  the  countries  west  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains ;  and  ten  years  muie  elapsed  before  any  settle- 
ment was  formed,  or  even  attemj  ted,  by  them  in  that  part  of  the 
world. 

Changes  were,  about  the  same  time,  made  in  the  system  of  the 
British  trade  in  the  northern  parts  of  America,  which  led  to  the 
most  important  political  and  commercial  results. 

Frequent  allusions  have  been  already  made  to  the  enmity  subsist- 
ing between  the  Hudson's  Bay  and  the  North-West  Companies. 


i'*.  ; 


H 


T    si, 


h     I 


324 


DISPUTES    OF    BRITISH    FUR    COMPANIES. 


[1816 


This  feeling  was  displayed  only  in  words,  or  in  the  commission  of 
petty  acts  of  injury  or  annoyance  by  each  against  the  other,  until 
1814,  when  a  regular  war  broke  out  between  the  parties,  which 
was,  for  some  time  after,  openly  carried  on.  The  scene  of  the 
hostilities  was  the  territory  traversed  by  the  Red  River  of  Hudson's 
Bay  and  its  branches,  in  which  Lord  Selkirk,  a  Scotch  nobleman, 
had,  in  1811,  obtained  from  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  a  grant 
of  not  less  than  a  hundred  thousand  square  miles,  for  the  establish- 
ment of  agricultural  colonies.  The  validity  of  this  grant  was 
denied  by  the  North- West  Company,  to  which  the  proposed  occu- 
pation of  the  territory  in  question  would  have  been  absolutely 
ruinous,  as  the  routes  from  Canada  to  the  north-western  trading 
posts  ran  through  it,  and  from  it  were  obtained  nearly  all  the  pro- 
visions consumed  at  those  posts.  The  British  government,  however, 
appeared  to  favor  and  protect  Lord  Selkirk's  project,  and  a  large 
number  of  Scotdi  Highlanders  were,  without  opposition,  established 
on  Red  River,  the  country  about  which  received,  in  1812,  the 
name  of  Ossinobia.  For  two  years  after  the  formation  of  the  set- 
tlement, peace  was  maintained;  at  length,  in  January,  1814,  Miles 
Macdonnel,  the  governor  of  the  new  province,  issued  a  proclama- 
tion, in  which  he  set  forth  the  limits  of  the  region  claimed  by  his 
patron,  and  prohibited  all  persons,  under  pain  of  seizure  and 
prosecution,  from  carrying  out  of  it  "  any  provisions,  either  of  flesh, 
dried  meat,  grain,  or  vegetables,"  during  that  year.  The  attempts 
to  enforce  this  prohibition  were  resisted  by  the  North- West  traders, 
who  appeared  so  resolute  in  their  deterihination  not  to  yield,  that 
the  colonists  became  alarmed,  and  quitted  the  country,  some  of 
them  returning  to  Canada,  and  others  emigrating  to  the  United 
States.  In  the  following  year.  Lord  Selkirk  again  sent  settlers  of 
various  nations  to  the  Red  River,  between  whom  and  the  North- 
West  people  hostilities  were  immediately  begun.  Posts  were  taken 
and  destroyed  on  both  sides;  and,  on  the  19th  of  June,  1816,  a 
battle  was  fought,  in  which  the  Ossinobians  were  routed,  and 
seventeen  of  their  number,  including  their  governor,  Mr.  Semple, 
were  killed.  The  country  was  then  again  abandoned  by  the 
settlers.* 

These  affairs  were  brought  before  the  British  Parliament  in  June, 


*  Lord  Selkirk's  Sketch  of  the  British  Fur  Trade  in  Jforlh  .America,  published  in 
1816,  and  the  review  of  it  in  the  London  Quarterly  Review  for  October,  1816  — 
Narrative  of  the  Occurrences  in  the  Indian  Countries  of  America,  published  by  the 
North- West  Company  in  1817,  containing  all  the  documents  on  the  subject. 


>f    [1816 

nmission  of 

other,  until 
rties,  which 
cene  of  the 
of  Hudson's 
[i  nobleman, 
)any  a  grant 
Lhe  establish- 
3  grant  was 
oposed  occu- 
m  absolutely 
istern  trading 
ly  all  the  pro- 
lent,  however, 
[,  and  a  large 
)n,  established 

in  1812,  the 
jn  of  the  set- 
y,  1814,  Miles 
d  a  proclama- 
claimed  by  his 
ff  seizure  and 

either  of  flesh. 

The  attempts 

i-West  traders, 
to  yield,  that 

^ntry,  some  of 

to  the  United 
int  settlers  of 
id  the  North- 

»sts  were  taken 
June,  1816,  a 

[e  routed,  and 
r,  Mr.  Semple, 

Idoned  by  the 

itnent  in  June, 

riea,  published  in 
October,  1816  — 
published  by  the 
U  subject. 


1821.]      JURISDICTIOV    or    the    CANADA   COURTS    EXTENDED.  325 

1819 ;  and  a  debate  ensued,  in  the  course  of  which  the  proceedings 
of  the  two  rival  associations  were  minutely  investigated.  The 
ministry  then  interposed  its  mediation,  and  a  compromise  was  thus 
at  length  effected,  by  which  the  North- West  Company  became 
united  with,  or  rather  merged  in,  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company.  At 
the  same  time,  and  in  connection  with  this  arrangement,  an  "  act 
for  regulating  the  fur  trade  and  establishing  a  criminal  and  civil 
jurisdiction  in  certain  parts  of  North  America"  was  passed  in 
Parliament,  containing  every  provision  required  to  give  stability  to 
the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  and  efficiency  to  its  operations. 

By  this  act,  passed  on   the  2d  of  July,  1821,  the   king  was 
authorized  to  make  grants  or  give  licenses  to  any  body  corporate, 
company,  or  person,  for  the  exclusive  privilege  of  trading  with  the 
Indians,  in  all  such  parts  of  North  'America  as  may  be  specified 
in  the  grants,  not  being  parts  of  the  territories  previously  granted 
to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  or  of  any  of  his  majesty's  provinces 
in  North  America,  or  any  territories  belonging  to  the  United  States 
of  America :  provided,  however,  that  no  such  grant  or  license  shall 
be  given  for  a  longer  period  than  twenty-one  years ;  that  no  grant 
or  license  for  exclusive  trade,  in  the  part  of  America  west  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  which,  by  the  convention  of  1818  with  the  United 
States,  remained  free  and  open  to  the  subjects  or  citizens  of  both 
nations,  shall  be  used  to  the  prejudice  or  exclusion  of  citizens  of 
the  United  States  engaged  in  such  trade ;  and  that  no  British  sub- 
ject shall  trade  in  those  territories  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains 
without  such  license  or  grant.     By  the  same  act,  also,  the  courts  of 
judicature  of  Upper  Canada  are  empowered  to  take  cognizance  of 
all  causes,  civil  or  criminal,  arising  in  any  of  the  above-mentioned 
territories,  including  those  previously  granted  to  the  Hudson's  Bay 
Company,  and  "  other  parts  of  America,  not  within  the  limits  of 
either  of  the  provinces  of  Upper  or  Lower  Canada,  or  of  any  civil 
government  of  the  United  States ;  "  and  justices  of  the  peace  are  to 
be  commissioned  in  those  territories,  to  execute  and  enforce  the 
laws  and  the  decisions  of  the  courts,  to  take  evidence,  and  commit 
offenders  and  send  them  for  trial  to  Canada,  and  even,  under  cer- 
tain circumstances,  to  hold  courts  themselves,  for  the  trial  of  crimi- 
nal offences  and  misden^eanors  not  punishable  by  death,  and  of 
civil  causes,  in  which  the  amount  at  issue  should  not  exceed  two 
hundred  pounds.* 

*  See  the  act  and  the  grant  here  mentioned  in  the  Proofs  and  Illustrations,  at  the 
end  of  this  volume,  under  the  letter  I,  No.  3. 


I     \ 


m 


■  ■ 


I  j  '■! ; 


326 


SEABCH   FOR   A   NOBTH-WEST   PASSAGE    RESUMED.        [1821. 


Upon  the  passage  of  this  act,  the  union  of  the  two  companies 
was  effected,  and  a  grant  was  made,  by  the  king,  to  "  the  governor 
and  company  of  adventurers  trading  to  Hudson's  Bay,  and  to 
William  Macgillivray,  Simon  Macgillivray,  and  Edward  Ellice,"  the 
persons  so  named,  representing  the  former  proprietors  of  the  North- 
West  Company,*  of  the  exclusive  trade,  for  twenty-one  years,  in  all 
the  countries  in  which  such  privileges  could  be  granted  agreeably 
to  the  act.  Persons  in  the  service  of  the  company  were,  at  the 
same  time,  commissioned  as  justices  of  the  peace  for  those  coun- 
tries; and  the  jurisdiction  of  the  courts  of  Upper  Canada  was 
rendered  effective  as  far  as  the  shores  of  the  Pacific,  no  exception 
being  made,  in  that  respect,  by  the  act,  with  regard  to  any  of  the 
territories  embraced  in  the  grant,  "not  mthin  the  limits  of  any  civU 
government  of  the  United  States." 

About  this  period,  also,  the  search  for  a  north-west  passage,  or 
navigable  communication  between  the  Atlantic  and  the  Pacific, 
north  of  America,  which  had  been  so  long  suspended,  was  resumed 
by  British  officers,  under  the  auspices  of  their  government;  and 
expeditions  for  that  object  were  made  through  Baffin's  Bay,  as  well 
as  by  land,  through  the  northernmost  parts  of  the  American  conti- 
nent. The  geographical  results  of  these  expeditions  were  highly 
interesting,  while,  at  the  same  time,  the  skill,  courage,  and  perse- 
verance, of  the  British  were  honorably  illustrated  by  the  labors  of 
Ross,  Parry,  Franklin,  and  their  companions.  The  west  coasts  of 
Baffin's  Bay  were  carefully  surveyed,  and  many  passages  leading 
from  it  towards  the  west  and  south-west,  were  traced  to  considera- 
ble distances.  The  progress  of  the  ships  through  these  passages 
was,  however,  in  each  case,  arrested  by  ice ;  and,  although  many 
extensive  portions  of  the  northern  coast  of  the  continent  were 
explored,  and  the  Arctic  Sea,  in  their  vicinity,  was  found  free  from 
ice  during  the  short  summer,  the  question  respecting  the  existence 
of  a  northern  channel  of  communication  between  the  oceans  was 
left  unsolved.  These  voyages,  independently  of  the  value  of  their 
scientific  results,  also  proved  most  advantageous  to  the  commerce 
of  the  British  throughout  the  whole  of  their  territories  in  America, 
as  new  routes  were  opened,  and  new  regions,  abounding  in  furs, 
were  rendered  accessible. 

The  Russians  were,  in  the  mean  time,  constantly  increasing  their 

•  In  185i4,  the  North-WcBt  Company  surrendered  its  rights  and  interests  to  the 
Hudson's  Bay  Company,  in  the  name  of  which  alone  all  the  operations  were  thence- 
forward conducted. 


,     [1821. 

companies 
3  governor 
ly,  and  to 
ElUce,"  the 
the  NoTth- 
^ears,  in  all 
d  agreeably 
jvere,  at  the 
those  coun- 
Canada  was 
JO  exception 
3  any  of  the 
s  of  any  civil 

3t  passage,  or 
I  the  Pacific, 
,  was  resumed 
jrnment;  and 
s  Bay,  as  well 
nerican  conti- 
18  were  highly 
ge,  and  perse- 
r  the  labors  of 
jvest  coasts  of 
ssagea  leading 
i  to  considera- 
these  passages 
dthough  many 
:ontinent  were 
)und  free  from 
the  existence 
Lhe  oceans  was 
value  of  their 
the  commerce 
lies  in  America, 
inding  in  fow, 


1815.] 


RUSSIAN   SETTLEMENTS   IN   CALirOBNIA. 


327 


increasing 


their 


^d  intereBta  to  the 


ations  were 


thenM' 


trade  in  the  Pacific,  and,  in  addition  to  their  establishments  on  the 
northernmost  coasts  of  that  ocean,  they  had  taken  possession  of  the 
country  adjoining  Port  San  Francisco,  which  they  seemed  deter- 
mined, as  well  as  able,  to  retain.     With  this  object,  Baranof,  the 
chief  agent  of  the  Russian  American  Company,  in  1812,  obtained 
from  the  Spanish  governor  of  California  permission  to  erect  some 
houses,  and  to  leave  a  few  men  on  the  shore  of  Bodega  Bay,  a 
little  north  of  Port  San  Francisco,  where  they  were  employed  in 
hunting  the  wild  cattle,  and  drying  meat  for  the  supply  of  Sitka 
and  the  other  settlements.     In  the  course  of  two  or  three  years 
after  this  permission  was  granted,   the  number  of  persons   thus 
employed  became  so  great,  and  their  dwelling  assumed  so  much 
the  appearance  of  a  fort,   that  the  governor  thought  proper  to 
remonstrate  on  the  subject;  and,  his  representations  being  disre- 
garded, he  formally  commanded  the  Russians  to  quit  the  territories 
of  his  Catholic  majesty.     The  command  was  treated  with  as  little 
respect  as  the  remonstrance ;  and,  upon  its  repetition,  the  Russian 
agent,  Kuskof,  coolly  denied  the  right  of  the  Spaniards  over  the 
territory,  whirh  he  asserted  to  be  free  and  open  for  occupation  by 
the  people  of  any  civilized  power.     The  governor  of  California 
was  unable  to  enforce  his  commands ;  and,  as  no  assistance  could 
be  afforded  to  him  from  Mexico,  in  which  the  rebellion  was  then 
at  its  height,  the  intruders  were  left  in  possession  of  the  ground, 
where  they  remained  until  1840,  in  defiance  alike  of  Spaniards 
and  of  Mexicans. 

On  the  restoration  of  peace  in  Europe,  in  1814,  the  Russian 
American  Company  resolved  to  make  another  effort  to  establish  a 
direct  commercial  intercourse,  by  sea,  between  its  possessions  on 
the  North  Pacific  and  the  European  ports  of  the  empire.  With  this 
object,  the  American  ship  Hannibal  was  purchased,  and,  her  name 
having  been  changed  to  Suwarrow,  she  was  despatched  from  Cron- 
Jtadt,  under  Lieutenant  Lazaref,  laden  with  merchandise,  for  Sitka, 
whence  she  returned  in  the  summer  of  1815,  with  a  cargo  of  furs 
valued  at  a  million  of  dollars.  The  adventure  proving  successful, 
others  of  the  same  kind  were  made,  until  the  communications  be- 
came regular,  as  they  now  are. 

After  the  departure  of  this  vessel  from  Sitka,  Baranof  sent  about 
a  hundred  Russians  and  Aleutians,  under  the  direction  of  Dr. 
Schaeffer,  a  German,  who  had  been  the  surgeon  of  the  Suwarrow, 
with  the  intention,  apparently,  of  taking  possession  of  one  of  the 
Sandwich  Islands.     These  men  landed  first  at  Owyhee,  whence 


:  'n 


i  ■  t 


i   nm 


"ri''  ■! 


t;Hi 


328 


RUSSIAN    SETTLEMENTS    IN    CALIFORNIA. 


[1819. 


m  I. 


m  ■ 


mti 


'!■  i 


they  passed  successively  to  Woahoo  and  Atooi ;  and  in  the  latter 
island  they  ren^ained  a  year,  committing  many  irregularities,  witli- 
out,  however,  effecting,  in  any  way,  the  supposed  objects  of  their 
expedition,  until  th&y  were  at  length  forced  to  submit  to  the  author- 
ities of  Tamahamaha,  and  to  quit  the  islands.'* 
t  Expeditions  were  also  made  by  the  Russians  to  Bering's  Strait, 
and  t,:-:  seas  beyond  it,  for  the  purpose  of  determining  the  question 
as  to  ^hc  .reparation  of  Asia  and  America,  which,  though  long  before 
supposef'  to  have  been  ascertained,  was  again  rendered  doubtful  by 
some  circumstances  of  recent  occurrence.  With  this  object.  Cap- 
tain Otto  von  Kotzebue  sailed  from  Cronstadt  in  the  ship  Ruric, 
which  had  been  fitted  out  at  the  expense  of  the  ex-chancellor 
Romanzof,  and,  in  the  summer  of  1816,  penetrated  through  :he 
strait  into  the  Arctic  Sea ;  but,  although  he  surveyed  the  coasts  of 
both  continents  on  that  sea  more  minutely  than  any  navigator  who 
had  preceded  him,  he  was  unable  to  advance  so  far  in  any  direction 
as  Cook  had  gone  in  1778.  In  1820,  two  other  vessels  were  sent 
to  that  part  of  the  ocean,  with  the  same  objects ;  but  no  detailed 
account  of  their  voyage  has  been  made  public.  In  the  mean  time, 
however,  the  doubts  as  to  the  separation  of  the  two  continents  were 
completely  removed,  by  Captains  Wrangel  and  Anjou,  who  sur- 
veyed the  eastern  parts  of  the  Siberian  coast  with  great  care,  in 
defiance  of  the  most  dreadful  difficulties  and  dangers.f 

Nor  did  the  Russians  neglect  to  improve  the  administration  of 
their  affairs  on  the  North  Pacific  coasts.  In  1817,  Captain  Golow- 
nin  was  despatched  from  Europe,  in  the  sloop  of  war  Kamtchatka, 
with  a  commission  from  the  emperor  to  inquire  into  the  state  of  the 
Russian  dominions  in  America ;  and,  upon  the  report  brought  back 
by  him,  it  was  resolved  that  a  radical  change  should  be  made  in  the 
management  of  those  possessions.  Accordingly,  upon  the  renewal 
of  the  charter  of  the  company  on  the  8th  of  July,  1819,  regulations 
were  put  in  execution,  by  which  the  governor  and  other  chief 
officers  of  Russian  America  became  directly  responsible  for  their 

•  For  further  particulars  on  this  subject,  the  reader  —  if  he  should  consider  the 
matter  worth  investighting  —  may  consult  Kotzebue 's  narrative  of  his  voyage  to  tlie 
Pacific,  in  1815-16,  and  Jarves's  History  of  the  Sandwich  Islands. 

t  See  the  agreeable  and  instructive  narrative,  by  Kotzebue,  of  his  voyage  in  search 
of  a  north-east  passage.  Wrangel's  account  of  his  expedition,  which  has  been  re- 
cently published,  is  a  most  interesting  work,  not  only  fron*  the  multitude  of  new  facts 
in  geography,  and  in  many  of  the  pliysical  sciences,  which  it  communicates,  but  also 
from  the  admiration  which  it  inspires  for  the  courage,  good  temper,  an''  ^ood  feeling, 
of  the  adventurous  narrator.  Wrangel  has  since  been,  for  many  years,  the  governor- 
general  of  Russian  America,  and  is  now  un  admiral  in  the  service  of  his  country. 


?fc ;  •-, 


[1819. 

n  the  latter 
irities,  with- 
(Cts  of  their 
» the  author- 
ring's  Strait, 
;  the  question 
h  long  before 
d  doubtful  by 
»  object,  Cap- 
e  ship  Ruric, 
ex-chancellor 
i  through    he 
1  the  coasts  of 
navigator  who 
n  any  direction 
issels  were  sent 
Dut  no  detailed 
the  mean  time, 
continents  were 
Lnjou,  who  sur- 
ti  great  care,  in 

ers.f 
liministration  of 

Captain  Golow- 

rar  Kamtchatka, 

the  state  of  the 
»Tt  brought  back 

be  made  in  the 
[pon  the  renewal 
L819,  regulations 
,and  other  chief 
[onsible  for  their 

should  consider  the 
of  his  voyage  to  tUe 

This  voyage  in  search 
i  which  has  been  K- 
Luitude  of  new  facts 
Lmunicat^s,  but  also 
^^j  an''  good  feeling. 
„  y'eais,  the  governor- 
be  of  his  country. 


1819.]  OCCURRENCES    AT   THE    SANDWICH    ISLANDS. 


329 


conduct,  and  the  condition  of  all  classes  of  the  population  of  those 
countries  was  materially  benefited.  The  death  of  Barunof  ren- 
dered the  introduction  of  these  reforms  less  difficult;  and  the 
superintendence  of  the  colonies  has  ever  since  been  committed  to 
honorable  and  enlightened  men,  generally  officers  in  the  Russian 
navy,  under  whose  direction  the  abuses  formerly  prevailing  to  so 
frightful  an  extent,  have  been  gradually  removed  or  abated.* 

About  the  same  time,  an  event  occurred,  of  great  importance  in 
the  history  of  a  country  which  is,  no  doubt,  destined  materially  to 
influence  the  political  condition  of  the  north-western  coasts  and 
regions  of  America.  Tamahamaha,  king  of  all  the  Sandwich 
Islands,  died  in  May,  1819,  at  the  age  of  sixty-three,  and  was 
succeeded  in  power  by  his  son,  or  reputed  son,  Riho  Riho,  or 
Tamahamaha  Il.f  Of  the  merits  and  demerits  of  Tamahamaha, 
it  would  be  out  of  place  here  to  speak  at  length.  He  was  a  chief 
of  note  at  the  time  of  the  discovery  of  the  islands  by  Cook,  when 
his  character  had  been  already  formed,  and  the  seeds  of  much  that 
was  evil  had  been  sown,  and  had  taken  firm  root  m  his  mind.  No 
sooner,  however,  was  he  brought  into  contact  with  civilized  men, 
than  he  began  to  learn,  and,  what  was  more  difficult,  to  unlearn. 
His  first  objects  were  of  a  nature  purely  selfish.  He  sought  power 
to  gratify  his  ambition  and  his  thirst  for  pleasure,  bu*  he  used  it, 
when  obtained,  for  nobler  ends ;  and  of  all  the  sovereigns  of  the 
earth,  his  contemporaries,  no  one  certainly  attempted  or  eflfected  as 
much,  in  proportion  to  his  means,  for  the  advancement  of  his 
people,  as  this  barburian  chief  of  a  little  ocean  island. 

Upon  the  death  of  Tamahamaha,  great  changes  were  efTected  in 
the  affairs  of  the  Sandwich  Islands.  The  old  king  had  resolutely 
maintained  the  religion  of  his  forefathers,  though  he  suppressed 
many  of  its  horrible  ceremonies  and  observances.  Riho  Riho,  how- 
ever, soon  after  his  accession,  abolished  thi::t  religion,  and  embraced 
the  faith  of  the  white  men  who  came  to  his  islands  in  great  ships 
from  distant  countries.  His  principal  chiefs,  Boki  and  Krymakoo, 
(or  Kalaimaku,)  had  been  previously,  in  August,  1819,  baptized 
and  received  into  the  bosom  of  the  Roman  Catholic  church  by  the 

*  Statische  und  ethnographische  Nachrichten,  nber  die  Russischen  Besitzungen  an 
der  NordwestkQste  von  Amerika —  Statistical  and  ethnographical  Notices  concerning 
the  Russian  Possessions  on  the  North- West  Coasts  of  America — by  Admiral  von 
Wrangel,  late  governor-general  of  those  countries,  published  at  St.  Petersburg, 
in  1839. 

t  These  names  are  now  generally  written  LUto  Ldho  and  Kamehamaha. 

42 


^!  i  1 


l|:;i.J?, 


Bm 


330 


CURISTIANITY    IN   THE    SANDWICH    ISLANDS. 


[1819. 


!      ':    4         > 


til' 


chaplain  of  the  French  corvette  L'Uranie,  during  her  voyage 
around  the  world  under  Captain  Freycinet ;  and,  early  in  IS'^O,  a 
vessel  reached  the  islands  from  Boston,  bringing  a  number  of 
missionaries  of  the  Presbyterian  or  ConcrrejimtiorjHlist  sects,  who 
have  been  ^established  there  ever  since,  taid  ha^e  cx^jrcised,  as  will 
be  hereaft«;r  shown,  a  powerful  and  gener  •lly  bencticial  influence 
over  the  people  and  their  rulers.* 

"  The  American  miBSKiarien,  immediately  -ni  antering;  ths  Uandvvc';  islandi, 
began  the  study  of  the  langu.-jvc  througii  which  ti^  ir  instructions  were  tu  be  con- 
veyed. This  liiiitrunge  they  I'mtnd  to  be  ihe  same  throughout  the  group;  but,  ag 
ooniiderable  differ<';ices  existed  hi  its  pronunciation  in  different  islands,  the^  Hclected 
the  most  pure,  or  thi-j  most  generally  used,  of  the  <!ial<;ctB,  in  which  t  her  formed  a 
vocabulary,  employing  English  letters  to  repvesrnt  the  sounc?a,  liut  ^iseiy  ;  snfining 
each  letter  to  the  exnr<  gsion  of  a  fixed  aound.  i'hp  History  of  the  American  Board 
of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions,  ,vhioh  may  be  ''oiisid;"ed  as  o/hcial  authority 
on  all  matters  connected  with  the  mis'Vitins  in  the  ''aridwic'  'ilandis,  contains,  at 
p.  IIU,  the  followJnff  clear  and  concise  view  of  the  tiystem  of  orthography  thus 
ii*Jopted :  — 

rhe  Iiav<-a-an  [Owyheean]  alphabet  contains  twelve  letters  bnly.  It  has  five 
vowclj  —  a,  sounded  as  a  in  father  ;  e,  as  a  iii  hate  ;  i,  as  ee  in  feet ;  o,  as  o  in  pole; 
iird  tt,  as  00  in  boot ;  and  seven  consonants —  A,  k,  /,  m,  n,  p,  and  w,  sounded  as  in 
Laglish.  I'he  long  English  sound  of  i  is  represented  by  ui,  as  in  Lohaina,  where 
the  second  syllable  is  accented,  and  pronoum  "-d  like  the  English  word  high.  Tiie 
second  syllable,  wai,  of  Hawaii,  the  name  of  tiit'  largest  ot'the  islands,  is  pronounced 
like  the  first  syllable  of  the  English  name  IV.j.^ian ;  and,  giving  the  letters  the  usual 
English  sounds,  it  might  be  spelled  Ha-wy-ee.  The  first  syllable  should  be  pro- 
nounced very  slightly,  and  a  strong  accent  placed  on  the  second.  The  sound  of  ow 
(in  caw)  is  represented  by  au  ;  as,  Maui,  pronounced  Mow-ee.  The  natives  do  not 
distinguish  the  sounds  oik  and  (  from  each  other,  bat  call  the  same  island  sometimea 
Kaui  and  Taui,  without  perceiving  the  difference.  In  the  same  way,  d,  I,  and  r,  are 
confounded,  and  the  same  place  is  called  indiff<!>rently  Uido,  Hilo,  or  Hiro.  The 
■an^e  occurs  in  respect  to  w  and  v.  In  fact,  theiic  interchangeable  consonants  are 
very  slightly  and  indistinctly  uttered,  so  that  a  foreigner  is  at  a  los^  to  know  which 
the  speaker  intends  to  use." 

Agreeably  to  this  system,  the  missionaries  have  published  a  translation  of  the 
Bible,  and  many  other  books,  in  the  language  of  the  Sandwich  Islands.  It  is,  how- 
ever, much  to  be  regre*  ted  that  they  and  their  friends,  from  whom  nearly  all  the  in- 
formation is  now  received  respecting  that  part  of  the  world,  should  think  proper 
to  apply  their  orthography  exclusively,  not  only  to  the  names  of  places  and  per- 
sons which  have  recently  gained  notoriety,  but  likewise  to  those  with  which  every 
one  has  become  familiar  through  the  journals  of  Cook  and  Vancouver.  Names  are, 
indeed,  not  written  uniformly  in  the  journals  here  mentioned ;  but  the  differences  are 
in  general  slight,  far  less  than  between  any  one  of  the  old  names  and  that  assigned 
to  the  same  object  in  the  new  system :  and  the  best  informed  men,  who  have  not 
■tudied  that  system  thoroughly,  will  scarcely  be  able  to  discover  that  the  Hawaii  of 
the  missionaries  is  Owyhee ;  that  Keilakakua  is  the  Karakakooa  rendered  sacred  as 
the  scene  of  Cook's  death  ;  and  that  Kaumalii  and  Kamehameha  are  no  others  than 
their  old  acquaintances,  Tamoree  and  Tamahamaha,  under  new  titles.  What  would 
be  thought  of  an  English  history  of  Germany,  in  which  places  and  persons  appeared 
only  under  their  (Jerman  names  —  in  which  Vienna  should  be  written  Wien;  Moravia, 
Mathrm;  Bohemia,  Boehmen;  Francis,  Franz;  Charles,  Karl;  &c.  ? 


331 


Ph'') 


i 


CHAPTER  XVI. 


1820  TO  1828. 


^:  I- 


Bill  reported  by  a  Commiltc?  of  the  House  of  Representatives  of  the  United  States, 
for  tlie  Occupation  of  the  Columbia  River — Ukase  of  the  Emperor  of  Russia,  with 
Regard  to  the  North  Pacific  Coasts — Negotiations  between  the  Governments  of  Great 
Britain,  Russia,  ana  'he  United  States  —  Conventions  between  the  United  States 
and  Russia,  and  between  Great  Britain  and  Russia — Further  Negotiations  between 
the  United  States  and  Great  Britain  relative  to  the  North- West  Coasts  —  Ifldefinit« 
Extension  of  the  Arrangement  for  the  joint  Occupancy  of  the  Territories  west  3f 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  by  the  British  and  the  Americans. 


only.    It  has  five 
( ;  o,  as  0  in  pole ; 
d  w,  Bounded  as  in 
in  Lofttt»n«.  where 
1  word  high-    The 
inds,  is  pronounced 
he  letters  the  usual 
ble  should  be  pro- 
The  sound  of  ow 
The  natives  do  not 
le  island  sometimes 
iray,  rf,  I,  and  r,  are 
lilo,  or  Hiro.    Tlie 
ble  consonants  are 
loE?  to  know  which 


Before  1820,  little,  if  any  thing,  relative  to  the  countries  west  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains  had  been  said  in  the  Congress  rf  the  United 
States ;  and  those  countries  had  excited  very  little  interest  among 
the  citizens  of  the  federal  republic  in  general. 

In  December  of  that  year,  however,  immediately  after  the  ratifica- 
tion of  the  Florida  treaty  by  Spain,  a  resolution  was  passed  by  the 
House  of  Representatives  in  Congress,  on  the  motion  of  Mr.  Floyd, 
of  Virginia  — ''  that  an  inquiry  should  be  made,  as  to  the  situation 
of  the  settlements  on  the  Pacific  Ocean,  and  as  to  the  expediency 
of  occupying  the  Columbia  River."  The  committee  to  which  this 
resolution  was  referred,  presented,  in  January  following,  a  long 
report,  containing  a  sketch  of  the  history  of  col(Miization  in  Amer- 
ica, with  an  account  of  the  fur  trade  in  the  northern  and  north- 
western sections  of  the  continent,  and  a  description  of  the  country 
claimed  by  the  United  States ;  from  all  which  are  drawn  the  con- 
clusions, —  that  the  whole  territory  of  America  bordering  upon  the 
Pacific,  from  the  41st  degree  of  latitude  to  the  53d,  if  not  to  the 
60th,  belongs  of  right  to  the  United  States,  in  virtue  of  the  purchase 
of  Louisiana  from  France,  in  1803,  of  the  acquisition  of  the  titles  of 
Spain  by  the  Florida  treaty,  and  of  the  discoveries  and  settlements 
of  American  citizens ;  —  that  the  trade  of  this  territory  in  furs  and 
other  articles,  and  the  fisheries  on  its  coasts,  might  be  rendered 
highly  productive ;  and  —  that  these  advantages  might  be  secured 
to  citizens  of  the  United  States  exclusively,  by  establishing  "  small 
trading  guards"  on  the  most  north-eastern  point  of  the  Missouri, 


W 


r  1 

'!    I 


i;'!  I 


'  ■    i 


r??j  : 


[Hi 


il 


333 


nUSSIAN   UKASR. 


(1822. 


and  at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  and  by  favoring  emigration  to 
the  country  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  not  only  from  the 
United  States,  but  also  from  China.  To  this  report  the  com- 
mittee appended  "  a  bill  for  the  occupation  of  the  Columbia,  and 
the  regulation  of  the  trade  with  the  Indians  in  the  territories  of 
the  United  States."  Without  making  any  remarks  upon  the  char- 
acter of  this  report,  it  may  be  observed,  that  the  terms  of  the  bill 
are  directly  at  variance  with  the  provisions  of  the  third  article  of  the 
convention  of  October,  1818,  between  the  United  States  and  Great 
Britain ;  as  the  Columbia  could  not  possibly  be  free  and  open  to  the 
vessels,  citizens,  and  subjects,  of  both  nations,  if  it  were  occupied  by 
either.  The  bill  was  suffered  to  lie  on  the  table  of  the  House  during 
the  remainder  of  the  session :  in  the  ensuing  year,  it  was  again 
brought  before  Congress,  and  an  estimate  was  obtained,  from  the 
navy  commissioners,  of  the  expense  of  transporting  cannon,  ammu- 
nition, and  stores,  by  sea,  to  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia ;  but  no 
further  notice  was  taken  of  the  subject  until  the  winter  of  1823. 
'  Measures  had,  in  the  mean  time,  been  adopted  by  the  Russian 
government,  with  regard  to  the  north-west  coasts  of  America,  which 
strongly  excited  the  attention  of  both  the  other  powers  claiming 
dominion  in  tl.at  quarter. 

Soon  after  the  renewal  of  the  charter  of  the  Russian  American 
Company,  a  ukase,  or  imperial  decree,  was  issued  at  St.  Petersburg, 
by  which  the  whole  west  coast  of  America,  north  of  the  5ist  par- 
allel, and  the  whole  east  coast  of  Asia,  north  of  the  latitude  of  45 
degrees  50  minutes,  with  all  the  adjacent  and  intervening  islands, 
were  declared  to  belong  exclusively  to  Russia ;  and  foreigners  were 
prohibited,  under  heavy  penalties,  from  approaching  within  a 
hundred  miles  of  any  of  those  coasts,  except  in  cases  of  extreme 
necessity.* 

This  decree  was  officially  communicated  to  the  government  of 
the  United  States  in  February,  1822,  by  the  Chevalier  de  Poletica, 
Russian  minister  at  Washington,  between  whom  and  Mr.  J.  Q 
Adams,  the  American  secmtary  of  state,  a  correspondence  imme- 
diately took  place  on  the  subject.  Mr.  Adams,  in  his  first  ote, 
simply  made  known  the  surprise  of  the  president  at  the  assertion 
of  a  claim,  on  the  part  of  Russia,  to  so  large  a  portion  of  the  west 


"  The  ukase,  dated  September  4th,  1821,  and  the  correspondence  between  the 
Russian  and  American  governmei7ts  with  regard  to  it,  may  be  found  at  length  among 
the  documents  accompanying  Priisident  Monroe's  message  to  Congress,  of  April 
17th,  1822. 


1822.] 


V 


DISCUSSION   or   THC    RUSSIAN   CLAIMS. 


333 


coasts  of  America,  and  at  the  promulgation,  by  that  power,  of  rules 
of  restriction  so  deeply  affecting  the  rights  of  the  United  States 
and  their  citizens ;  and  he  desired  to  know  whether  the  minister 
was  authorized  to  give  explanations  of  the  grounds  of  the  right 
claimed,  upon  principles  generally  recognized  by  the  laws  and 
usages  of  nations. 

To  this  M.  Poletica  replied  by  a  long  letter,  containing  a  sketch  — 
generally  erroneous — of  the  discoveries  of  his  countrymen  on  the 
north-west  coasts  of  Americo,  which  extended,  according  to  his 
idea,  southward  as  far  as  the  49th  parallel  of  latitude.  He  de- 
fended the  assumption  of  the  51st  parallel  as  the  southern  limit  of 
the  possessions  of  his  sovereign,  upon  the  ground  that  this  line  was 
inu'wny  between  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  where  the  citizens  of 
the  United  States  had  mac^c  an  establishment,  and  the  Russian 
settlement  of  Sitka ;  and  h'j  finally  maintained  that  his  government 
would  be  justifi;  Ae  in  exercising  the  rights  of  sovereignty  over  the 
whole  of  the  Pacific  north  of  the  said  parallel,  inasmuch  as  that  sec- 
tion of  the  sea  was  bounded  on  both  sides  by  Russian  territories,  and 
was  thus,  in  fact,  a  close  sea.  The  secretary  of  state,  in  return, 
asserted  that,  "  from  the  period  of  the  existence  of  the  United 
States  as  an  independent  nation,  their  vessels  had  freely  navigated 
those  seas ;  and  the  right  to  navigate  them  was  a  part  of  that  inde- 
pendence, as  also  the  right  of  their  citizens  to  trade,  even  in  arms 
and  munitions  of  war,  with  the  aboriginal  natives  of  the  north- 
west coast  of  America,  who  were  not  under  the  territorial  jurisdic- 
tion of  other  nations."  He  denied  in  toto  the  claim  of  the  Russians 
to  any  part  of  America  south  of  the  55th  degree  of  latitude,  on 
the  ground  that  this  parallel  was  declared,  in  the  charter  *  of  the 
Russian  American  Company,  to  be  the  southern  limit  of  the  dis- 

*  The  first  article  of  the  charter  or  privilege  granted  by  the  emperor  Paul  to  the 
Russian  American  Company,  on  the  8th  of  July,  1799,  is  as  follows :  — 

"In  virtue  of  the  discovery,  by  Russian  navigators,  of  a  part  of  the  coast  of 
America  in  the  north-east,  beginning  from  the  55th  degree  of  latitude,  and  of 
chains  of  islands  extending  from  Kamtchatka,  northward  towards  America,  and 
southward  towards  Japan,  Russia  has  acquired  the  right  of  possessing  those  lands ; 
and  the  said  company  is  authorized  to  enjoy  all  the  advantages  of  industry,  and  all 
the  establishments,  upon  the  said  coast  of  America,  in  the  north-east,  from  the  55th 
degree  of  latitude  to  Bering's  Strait,  and  beyond  it,  as  also  upon  the  Aleutian  and 
Kurile  Islands,  and  the  others,  situated  in  the  eastern  Arctic  Ocean." 

By  the  second  article, — 

"The  company  may  make  new  discoveries,  not  only  north,  but  also  south,  of  the 
said  55th  parallel  of  latitude,  and  may  occupy  and  bring  under  the  dominion  of  Rus- 
sia all  territories  thus  discovered,  observiug  the  rule,  that  such  territories  should  not 
have  been  previously  occupied  and  placed  under  subjection  by  another  nation." 


:)'ii 


lui 


334 


EXTRAVAOANT    PHETEKSIONA    OF    RUKIfA. 


;;'  I 


III 
if' 


n^^-A^. 


(1822. 


coveries  of  the  Russians  in  1799;  sinco  which  period  thoy  had  made 
no  discoveries  or  cstublishmonts  south  of  the  said  hue,  on  the 
coast  now  ciaimod  by  them.  With  re|?ard  to  tfie  suggestion  that 
the  Russian  government  might  justly  exercise  sovereignty  over  the 
Pacific  0(;ean  as  a  dose  sea,  because  it  claims  territories  both  on 
the  Asiatic  and  th<;  American  shores,  Mr.  Adams  merely  observed, 
that  the  distance  between  those  shores,  on  the  parallel  of  51  degrees 
north,  is/oi«  thousand  miles;  and  he  concluded  by  expressing  the 
persuasion  of  the  president  that  the  citizens  of  the  United  States 
would  remain  unmolested  in  the  prosecution  of  their  lawful  com- 
merce, and  that  no  cHect  would  be  given  to  a  prohibition  manifestly 
incompatible  with  their  rights. 

The  Russian  minister  plenipotentiary,  a  few  days  after  the  receipt 
of  Mr.  Adams's  last  communication,  sent  another  note,  supporting 
the  lights  of  his  sovereign,  in  which  he  advanced  "  the  authentic 
fact,  that,  in  1789,  the  Spanish  packet  St.  Charles,  commanded  by 
Captain  Haro,  found,  in  the  latitude  of  forty-eight  and  forty-nine 
degrees,  Russian  establishments,  to  the  number  of  eight,  consisting, 
in  the  whole,  of  twenty  families,  and  four  hundred  and  sixty-two 
individuals,  who  were  the  descendants  of  the  companions  of  Cap- 
tain Tchirikof,  sixpposed  until  then  to  have  perished."  Respecting 
this  *^  authentic  fact  y^  it  has  been  shown,  in  the  account*  already 
given  of  the  Spanish  voyage  to  which  the  Chevalier  Poletica  refers, 
that  Martinez  and  Hnro  did  find  eight  Russian  establishments  on 
the  North  Pacific  coast  of  America  in  1788,  but  that  they  were  all 
situated  in  the  latitudes  oi fifty-eight  tiwA  fifty-nine  degrees,  and  that 
the  persons  inhabiting  them  had  all  been,  a  short  time  previous, 
transported  thither,  from  Kamtchatka  and  the  Aleutian  Islands,  by 
Schelikof,  the  founder  of  the  Russian  American  Company.  The 
minister  doubtless  derived  his  information  from  the  introduction  to 
the  journal  of  Marchand's  voyage  ;  but  he  neglected  to  read  the  note 
appended  to  that  account,  in  which  the  error  is  explained. 

The  prohibitory  regulation  of  the  Russian  emperor,  and  the 
corresporidence  relating  to  it,  were  immediately  submitted  to  the 
Congress  of  the  United  States ;  and,  in  the  ensuing  year,  a  nego- 
tiation was  commenced  at  St.  Petersburg,  the  object  of  which  was 
to  settle  amicably  and  definitively  the  limits  of  the  territories  on 
the  north-west  side  of  America,  claimed  by  the  two  nations  re- 
spectively, and  the  terms  upon  which  their  navigation  and  trade  in 
the  North  Pacific  were  in  future  to  be  conducted.     A  negotiation, 


•  See  p.  186. 


1823.] 


OECLABATION    OF    PaCSIOCNT    MONROE. 


das 


for  Bimilar  purposes,  was,  at  the  same  time,  in  progress  at  St.  Peters^ 
burg,  between  the  governments  of  Russia  and  Great  Britain  ;  the 
latter  [jower  having  formally  protested  against  the  claims  and  princi« 
pics  advanced  in  the  ukase  of  1821,  immediately  on  its  appearance, 
and  subsequently,  during  the  session  of  the  congress  of  European 
sovereigns  at  Verona.*  Under  these  circumstancoH,  a  desire  was 
felt,  on  the  part  of  the  government  of  the  United  States,  that  a  joint 
convention  should  bo  concluded  between  the  three  nations  having 
claims  to  territories  on  the  north-west  side  of  America;  and  the 
envoys  of  the  republic  at  London  and  St.  Petersburg  were  severally 
instructed  to  propose  a  stipulation  to  the  effect  that  no  settlement 
should,  during  the  next  ten  years,  be  made,  in  those  territories,  by 
Russians  south  of  the  latitude  of  55  degrees,  by  citizens  of  the 
United  States  north  of  the  latitude  of  51  degrees,  or  by  British 
subjects  south  of  the  51st  or  north  of  the  55th  parallels. 

This  proposition  for  a  joint  convention  was  not  accepted  by 
either  of  the  governments  to  which  it  was  addressed  ;  the  principal 
ground  of  the  refusal  by  each  being  the  declaration  made  by  Presi- 
dent Monroe  in  his  message  to  Congress,  at  the  commencement  of 
the  session  of  1323,  that  —  in  the  discussions  and  arrangements  then 
going  on  with  respect  to  the  north-west  coasts  —  "  the  occasion  had 
been  judged  proper  for  asserting,  as  a  principle  in  which  the  rights 
and  interests  of  the  United  States  are  involved,  that  the  American 
continents,  by  the  free  and  independent  condition  which  they  have 
mvmed  and  maintain,  are  henceforth  not  to  be  considered  as  subjects 
for  colonization  by  any  European  power."  f    Against  this  declaration, 

*  Debate  in  Parliament  on  the  inquiiy  made  by  Sir  James  Mackintosh  on  this 
lubject,  May  21, 1823. 

t  The  message  of  December  2d,  1823,  containing  this  declaration,  also  announced 
the  resolution  of  the  United  States  to  view  "  as  the  manifestation  of  an  unfriendly 
diiposition"  towards  themselves  any  attempt,  on  the  part  of  a  European  power,  to 
oppress  or  control  the  destiny  of  any  of  the  independent  states  of  America.  This 
noble  resolution  was  taken  upon  the  assurance  that  the  United  .^^X'Xaa  would,  if  ne- 
cessary, be  sustained  in  enforcing  it  by  Great  Britain,  without  whc  m  ^..lOperation  it 
would  have  been  ineiTectire,  certainly  as  to  the  prevention  f  ^  \\":  attempts.  The 
circumstances  which  induced  the  American  government  tht .,  i<.,.  the  same  time, 
openly  to  offer  a  blow  at  the  only  nation  on  whose  assistance  it  could  depend,  in  case 
the  anticipated  attempts  should  be  made  by  the  despotic  powers  of  Europe,  have  not 
been  disclosed.  That  it  is  the  true  policy  of  the  United  States,  by  all  lawful  means, 
to  resist  the  extension  of  European  dominion  in  America,  and  to  confine  its  limits, 
uid  abridge  its  duration,  wherever  it  may  actually  exist,  is  a  proposition  which  no 
uguments  are  required  to  demonstrate,  either  to  American  citizens  or  to  European 
sovereigns ;  but  this  proclamation,  by  the  government  of  the  United  States,  of  its 
intention  to  pursue  those  ends,  could  have  no  other  effect  than  to  delay  the  attainment 
of  them,  as  it  has  evidently  done. 


f:  1 

'  '1 '  m 

It 


Mm 
■mm 


.    J    i 


m  ■' 


i: 


33r> 


HECOMMENDATIONS    Of    ni^KtV.Xf.    JE1UP. 


[1823. 


which  —  however  just  and  politic  nt'\^t  i  Arvo  been  the  principle 
announced  —  was  unquestionably  impru<lont,  or  at  least  premature, 
the  British  and  the  Russian  governments  severally  protested ;  and 
as  there  were  many  other  points  on  which  it  was  not  probable  that 
the  three  powers  could  agree,  it  was  determined  that  the  negotia' 
tions  should  bo  continued,  as  they  had  been  commenced,  separately 
at  London  and  at  8t.  Petersburg. 

Another  publication,  equally  im|>olitic  on  the  part  of  the  Ameri- 
can government,  soon  after  contributed  to  render  more  difficult  the 
settlement  of  the  question  of  boundaries  on  the  Pacific  between  the 
United  State<4  and  Great  Britain. 

A  select  committee,  appointed  by  the  House  of  Representatives 
of  the  United  States,  in  December,  1823,  with  instructions  to  inquire 
into  the  expediency  of  occupying  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia, 
requested  General  Thomas  S.  Jcsup,  the  quartermaster-general  of  the 
army,  to  communicate  his  opinions  respecting  the  propriety  of  the 
measure  proposed,  as  well  as  its  practicability  and  the  best  method 
of  executing  it ;  in  answer  to  which  that  officer  sent,  on  the  16th 
of  February,  1824,  a  letter  containing  an  exposition  of  his  views  of 
the  true  policy  of  the  United  States  with  regard  to  the  north-west 
coasts  and  territories  of  America,  and  of  the  means  by  which  they 
might  be  carried  into  effect.  Leaving  aside  the  question  as  to  the 
rights  of  the  United  States,  he  considered  the  possession  and  military 
command  of  the  Columbia  and  of  the  Upper  Missouri  necessary  for 
the  protection,  not  only  of  the  fur  trade,  but  also  of  the  whole 
western  frontier  of  the  republic,  which  is  every  where  in  contact 
with  numerous,  powerful,  and  warlike  tribes  of  savages :  and,  for 
this  purpose,  he  recommended  the  immediate  despatch  of  two 
hundred  men  across  the  continent  to  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia, 
while  two  merchant  vessels  should  transport  thither  the  cannon, 
ammunition,  materials,  and  stores,  requisite  for  the  first  establish- 
ment ;  after  which,  four  or  five  intermediate  posts  should  be  formed 
at  points  between  Council  Bluffs,  on  the  Missouri,  (the  most  western 
spot  then  occupied  by  American  troops,)  and  the  Pacific.  By  such 
means,  says  the  letter,  "  present  protection  would  be  afforded  to 
our  traders,  and,  on  the  expiration  of  the  privilege  granted  to 
British  subjects  to  trade  on  the  waters  of  the  Columbia,  we  should 
be  enabled  to  remove  them  from  our  territory,  and  to  secure  the 
whole  trade  to  our  own  citizens."  ■    "^^ 

The  report  of  the  committee,  with  the  letter  from  General  Jesup 
annexed,  was  ordered  to  lie  on  the  table  of  the  House,  and  nothing 


[1823. 

I  tho  principle 
iBt  premature, 
)roteatod ;  and 
:  probable  that 
it  tho  ncgotia- 
iced,  separately 

;  of  the  Ameri- 
ore  ditTicult  the 
(\c  between  the 

Representatives 
ctionB  to  inquire 
the    Columbia, 
;er-generalofthe 
propriety  of  the 
the  best  method 
sent,  on  the  16th 
n  of  his  views  of 
to  the  north-west 
ts  by  which  they 
Luestion  as  to  the 
ssion  and  military 
mri  necessary  for 
Iso  of  the  whole 
where  in  contact 
lavages:  and,  for 
despatch  of  two 
of  the  Columbia, 
ther  the  cannon, 
je  first  establish- 
[should  be  formed 
the  most  western 
•acific.    By  such 
^  be  afforded  to 
ilege   granted  to 
umbia,  we  should 
^nd  to  secure  the 

U  Generol  Jesup 
juse,  and  nothing 


1824.] 


NCOOTIATION    AT    LONDON. 


831 


more  wai  done  on  tho  subject  during  that  seniion ;  tho  papen, 
however,  wore  both  published,  and  they  immediately  attracted  the 
attention  of  tho  British  ministry.  In  a  conference  hold  at  London, 
in  July  following,  between  the  American  envoy,  Mr.  Rush,  and  the 
British  commissioners,  Messrs.  Huskisson  and  Stratford  Canning, 
the  latter  gentlemen  commented  upon  the  observations  of  General 
Jesup,  particularly  upon  those  respecting  tho  removal  of  British 
traders  from  tho  territorios  of  the  Columbia,  which,  they  said,  "  were 
calculated  to  put  Great  Britain  especially  upon  her  guard,  appear- 
ing, as  they  did,  at  a  moment  when  a  friendly  negotiation  was 
pending  between  the  two  powers  for  the  adjustment  of  their  relative 
and  conflicting  claims  to  that  entire  district  of  country." 

It  is  moreover  certain,  from  the  accounts  of  Mr.  Rush,  as  well  as 
from  those  given  subsequently  by  Mr.  Gallatin,  that  the  publication 
of  General  Jesup's  letter,  and  the  declaration  in  President  Monroe's 
message  against  the  establishment  of  European  colonies  in  America, 
rendered  the  British  government  much  less  disposed  to  any  con- 
cession, with  regard  to  the  north-west  territories,  than  it  would 
otherwise  have  been ;  and  there  is  reason  to  believe,  from  many 
circumstances,  that  they  tended  materially  to  produce  a  union  of 
views,  approaching  to  a  league,  between  that  power  and  Russia, 
which  has  proved  very  disadvantageous  to  the  interests  of  the 
United  States  on  the  North  Pacific  coasts. 

The  negotiation  respecting  the  north-west  coasts  of  America, 
commenced  at  London  in  April,  1824,  was  not  long  continued; 
the  parties  being  so  entirely  at  variance  with  regard  to  facts  as  well 
as  principles,  that  the  impossibility  of  effecting  any  new  arrange- 
ment soon  became  evident.  Mr.  Rush,'**'  the  American  plenipoten- 
tiary, began  by  claiming  for  the  United  States  the  exclusive  pos- 
session and  sovereignty  of  the  whole  country  west  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  from  the  42d  degree  of  latitude,  at  least  as  far  north 
as  the  51st,  between  which  parallels  all  the  waters  of  the  Columbia 
were  then  supposed  to  be  included.  In  support  of  this. claim,  he 
cited,  as  in  1818,  the  facts  —  of  the  first  discovery  of  the  Columbia 
by  Gray — of  the  first  exploration  of  that  river  from  its  sources  to  the 
sea  by  Lewis  and  Clarke  —  of  the  first  settlement  on  its  banks  by 
the  Pacific  Fur  Company,  "a  settlement  which  was  reduced  by 
the  arms  of  the  British  during  the  late  war,  but  was  fornially  sur- 

*  Letter  from  Mr.  Rush  to  the  secretary  of  state,  of  Augrust  12th,  1824,  among  the 
documents  accompanying  President  Adams's  message  to  Congress  of  Janaary  31st, 

1896. 

4d 


I:: 

■li. 

it 


338         CLAIMS    OF   THE   V.   STATES    AND    OF    GREAT   BRITAIN.    [1824. 


rendered  up  to  the  United  States  at  the  return  of  peace,"  and  —  of 
the  transfer  by  Spain  to  the  United  States  of  all  her  titles  to  tliose 
territories,  founded  upon  the  well-known  discoveries  of  her  navi- 
gators ;  and  he  insisted,  agreeably  to  express  instructions  from  his 
government,  "  that  no  part  of  the  American  continent  was  thence- 
forth to  be  open  to  colonization  from  Europe."  In  explanation  and 
defence  of  this  declaration,  Mr.  Rush  ''  referred  to  the  principles 
settled  by  the  Nootka  Sound  convention  of  1790,  and  remarked, 
that  Spain  had  now  lost  all  her  exclusive  colonial  rights,  recognized 
under  that  convention :  first,  by  the  fact  of  the  independen'  of  the 
South  American  states  and  of  Llexico ;  and  next,  by  her  express 
renunciation  of  all  her  rights,  of  whatever  kind,  above  the  42d 
degree  of  north  latitude,  to  the  United  States.  Those  new  states 
would  themselves  now  possess  the  rights  incident  to  their  condition 
of  political  independence;  and  the  claims  of  the  United  States 
above  the  42d  parallel  as  high  up  as  60  degrees — claims  as  well 
in  their  own  right  as  by  succession  to  the  title  of  Spain  —  would 
henceforth  necessarily  preclude  other  nations  from  forming  colonial 
establishments  upon  any  part  of  the  American  continents." 

Messrs.  Huskisson  and  Canning,  in  reply,  denied  that  the 
circumstance  of  a  merchant  vessel  of  the  United  States  having 
penetrated  the  north-west  coast  of  America  at  the  Columbia  River, 
could  give  to  the  United  States  a  claim  along  that  coast,  both 
north  and  south  of  the  river,  over  territories  which,  they  insisted, 
had  been  previously  discovered  by  Great  Britain  herself,  in  expe- 
ditions fitted  out  under  the  authority  and  with  the  resources  of  the 
nation.  They  declared  that  British  subjects  had  formed  settle- 
ments upon  the  Columbia,  or  upon  rivers  flowing  into  it  west  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  coe  al  with,  if  not  prior  to,  the  settlement 
made  by  American  citizens  at  its  mouth ;  and  that  the  surrender  of 
that  settlement  after  the  late  war  was  in  fulfilment  <  •  :i.«  treaty  of 
Ghent,  and  did  not  aflfect  the  question  of  right  in  any  vvy.  They 
treated  as  false  or  doubtful  the  accounts  of  many  of  the  Spanish 
voyages  in  the  Pacific ;  alleging,  as  more  authentic,  the  narrative 
of  Drake's  expedition,  from  which  it  appeared  that  he  had,  in 
1579,  explored  the  west  coast  of  America  to  the  48th  paiailel  of 
latitude,  five  or  six  degrees  farther  north  than  the  Spaniards  them- 
selves pretended  to  have  advanced  before  that  period :  and  they 
refused  to  admit  that  any  title  could  be  derived  from  the  mere  fact 
of  Spanish  navigators  having  first  seen  the  ccist  at  particular  spts, 
even  when  this  was  capable  of  being  fully  substantiated.    Finally, 


'  and  —  of 
es  to  those 
f  her  navi- 
ns  from  his 
ivas  thence- 
anation  and 
B  principles 
I  remarked, 
,  recognized 
Jen'  ■  of  the 
her  oxprcs.3 
jve  the  42d 
56  new  states 
leir  condition 
Jnited  States 
jlaims  as  well 
pain  —  would 
ming  colonial 
ints." 

lied   that  the 
States  having 
dumbia  River, 
^t  coast,  both 
they  insisted, 
[rself,  in  expe- 
isources  of  the 
[formed  settle- 
ito  it  west  of 
the  settlement 
It  surrender  ot 
hi>  treaty  of 
U  woy.    They 
»f  the  Spanish 
I,  the  narrative 
it  he  had,  in 
;th  patallel  of 
laniards  them- 
iod:  and  they 
the  mere  fact 
|articular  spots, 
,ted.    Finally, 


1824.] 


PBOfOSITIONS    FOR   PARTITIOK. 


339 


they  assured  Mr.  Rush  that  their  government  would  never  assent  to 
the  claim  set  forth  by  him  respecting  the  territory  watered  by  the 
Columbia  River  and  its  tribiUaries,  which,  besides  being  essentially 
objectionable  in  its  general  bearings,  had  also  the  eflect  of  inter- 
fering directly  with  the  actual  rights  of  Great  Britain,  derived  from 
use,  occupancy,  and  settlement ;  asserting,  at  the  same  time,  that 
"  they  considered  the  unoccupied  parts  of  America  just  as  much 
open  as  heretofore  to  colonization  by  Great  Britain,  as  well  as  by 
other  European  powers,  agreeably  to  the  convention  of  1790, 
between  the  British  and  Spanish  governments,  and  that  the  United 
States  would  have  no  right  to  take  umbrage  at  the  establishment 
of  new  colonies  from  Europe,  in  any  such  parts  of  the  American 
continent."  * 

After  much  discussion  on  these  points,  Mr.  Rush  presented  a 

proposal  from  his  government,  that  any  country  west  of  the  Rocky 

Mountains,  which  might  be  claimed  by  the  United  States,  or  by 

Great  Britain,  should  be  free  and  open  to  the  citizens  or  subjects 

of  both  nations  for  ten  years  from  the  date  of  the  agreement : 

Provided,  that,  during  this  period,  no  settlements  were  to  be  made 

by  British  subjects  north  of  the  55th  or  south  of  the  51st  degrees 

of  latitude,  nor  by  American  citizens  north  of  the  latter  parallel. 

To  this  proposal,  which  Mr.  Rush  afterwards  varied  by  substituting 

the  49th  parallel  of  latitude  for  the  51st,  Messrs.  Huskisson  and 

Canning   replied   by  a  counter   proposal,  to  the  effect,   that   the 

boundary  between  the  territories  of  the  two  nations,  beyond  the 

Rocky  Mountains,   should  pass  from  those  mountains   westward 

along  the  49th  parallel  of  latitude,  to  the  north-easternmost  branch 

of  the  Columbia  River,  called  Macgillivray's  River  on  the  maps, 

and  thence  down  the  middle  of  the  stream,  to  the  Pacific ;  the 

British  possessing  the  country  north  and  west  of  such  line,  and  the 

United  States  that  which  lay  south  and  east  of  it :  Provided,  that 

the  subjects  or  citizens  of  both  nations  should  be  equally  at  liberty, 

during  the  space  of  ten  years  from  the  date  of  the  agreement,  to 

pass  by  land  or  by  water  through  all  the  territories  on  both  sides  of 

the  boundary,  and  to  retain  and  use  their  establishments  already 

formed  in  any  part  of  them.     The  British  plenipotentiaries  at  the 

same  time  declared  that  this  their  proposal  was  one  from  which 

*  Protocol  of  the  twelfth  conference  between  the  plenipotentiaries,  held  June  26th, 
1824,  among  the  documents  annexed  to  President  Adams's  message  to  Congress  of 
Janua/y  3Ut,  1836. 


n 


n;    'i 


S   !i 


340 


PROPOSITIONS    FOR   PARTITION. 


[1824. 


Great  Britain  would  certainly  not  depart ;  and,  as  all  prospect  of 
compromise  was  thus  destroyed,  the  negotiation  ended. 

In  this  discussion  between  the  United  States  and  Great  Britain, 
upon  the  subject  of  their  respective  claims  to  the  sovereignty  of 
the  countries  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  the  grounds  of  those 
claims  were  first  made  to  assume  a  form  somewhat  definite ;  and 
this  may  be  considered  as  principally  due  to  the  labor  and  pene- 
tration of  Mr.  Rush,  who  seems  to  have  been  the  first  to  inquire 
carefully  into  the  facts  of  the  case.  The  introduction  by  him  of  the 
Nootka  convention,  as  an  element  in  the  controversy,  was  according 
to  express  instructions  from  his  government.*  It  appears  to  have 
been  wholly  unnecessary,  and  was  certainly  impolitic.  No  allusion 
had  been  made  to  that  arrangement  in  any  of  the  previous  discus- 
sions with  regard  to  the  north-west  coasts,  and  it  was  doubtless 
considered  extinct ;  but  when  it  was  thus  brought  forward  by  the 
American  government  in  connection  with  the  declaration  against 
European  colonization,  as  a  settlement  of  general  principles  with 
regard  to  those  coasts,  an  argument  was  aiTorded  in  favor  of  the 
subsistence  of  the  convention,  of  which  the  British  government  did 
not  fail  to  take  advantage,  as  will  be  hereafter  shown. 


*  "  The  principles  settled  by  the  Nootka  Sound  convention  of  28th  October,  1790, 
were  — 

" '  Ist.  That  the  rights  of  fishing  in  the  South  Seas ;  ci'  trading  with  the  natives  of 
the  north-west  coast  of  America ;  and  of  making  settlements  on  the  coast  itself,  for 
the  purposes  of  that  trade,  north  of  the  actual  settlements  of  Spain,  were  common  to 
all  the  European  nations,  and,  of  course,  to  the  United  Str.tes. 

"  '  2d.  That,  BO  far  as  the  actual  settlements  of  Spain  aad  extended,  she  possessed 
the  exclusive  rights  territorial,  and  of  navigation  and  fithery  ;  extending  to  the  dis- 
tance of  ten  miles  from  the  coast  so  actually  occupied. 

"  '  3d.  That,  on  the  coasts  of  South  America,  and  the  adjacent  islands  south  of  the 
parts  already  occupied  by  Spain,  no  settlement  should  thereafter  be  mudc  cither  by 
British  or  Spanish  subjects;  but,  on  both  sides,  should  be  retained  the  liberty  of  land- 
ing and  of  erecting  temporary  buildings  for  the  purposes  of  the  fishery.  These  rights 
were,  also,  of  course,  erijoyed  by  the  people  of  the  United  States. 

" '  The  exclusive  rights  of  Spain  to  any  part  of  the  American  continents  have 
ceased.  That  portion  of  the  convention,  therefore,  which  recognizes  the  exclusive 
colonial  rights  of  Spain  on  these  continents,  though  confirmed,  as  between  Great 
Britain  and  Spain,  by  the  first  additional  article  to  the  treaty  of  the  5th  of  July,  1814, 
has  been  extinguished  by  the  fact  of  the  independence  of  the  South  American  nations 
and  of  Mexico.  Those  independent  nations  will  possess  the  rights  incident  to  that 
condition,  and  their  territories  will,  of  course,  be  subject  to  no  exclusive  right  of  nav- 
igation in  their  vicinity,  or  of  access  to  them,  by  any  foreign  nation. 

"  '  A  necessary  consequence  of  this  state  of  chings  will  be,  that  the  American  con- 
tinents, henceforth,  will  no  longer  be  subject  to  colonization.  Occupied  by  civilized, 
independent  nations,  they  will  be  accessible  to  Europeans,  and  each  other,  on  that 


h  October,  1790, 


1824.]    CONVENTION   BETWEEN   THE    U.    STATES    AND    RUSSIA.  341 

In  the  mean  tioie,  the  negotiation  between  the  United  States  and 
Russia  was  terminated  by  a  convention,  signed  at  St.  Petersburg, 
on  the  5th  of  ^pril,  1824,  containing  five  articles:  by  the  Jirst  of 
which,  it  is  agreed  that  the  respective  citizens  or  subjects  of  the 
two  nations  shah  not  be  disturbed  or  restrained  in  navigating  or  in 
fishing  in  any  pait  of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  or  in  the  power  of  resort- 
ing to  the  coasts  upon  points  which  may  not  already  have  been 
occupied,  for  the  purpose  of  trading  with  the  natives;  saving, 
always,  the  restrictions  and  conditions  determined  by  the  following 
articles,  to  wit:  by  the  second  article,  the  citizens  of  the  United 
States  shall  not  resoit  to  any  point  on  the  north-west  coasts  of 
America,  where  there  is  a  Russian  establishment,  without  the 
permission  of  the  governor  or  commandant  of  the  place,  and  vice 
versa:  by  the  third  article,  neither  the  United  States  nor  their 
citizens  shall,  in  futvtre,  form  any  establishment  on  those  coasts,  or 
the  adjacent  islands,  north  of  the  latitude  of  54  degrees  40  minutes, 
and  the  Russians  shall  make  none  south  of  that  latitude.  "  It  is, 
nevertheless,  understood,"  says  the  fourth  article,  "  that  during  a 
term  of  ten  years,  counting  from  the  signature  of  the  present  con- 
vention, ihe  ships  of  both  powers,  or  which  belong  to  their  citizens 
or  subjects  respectively,  may  reciprocally  frequent,  without  any 
hinderance  whatever,  the  interior  seas,  gulfs,  harbors,  and  creeks, 
upon  the  coast  mentioned  in  the  preceding  article,  for  the  purpose 


footing  alone;  and  the  Pacific  Ocean,  in  every  part  of  it,  will  remain  open  to  tho 
navigation  of  all  nations,  in  like  manner  with  the  Atlantic'  "  —  Instructions  of  the 
Hon.  J.  Q.  Adams,  secretary  of  state  of  the  United  St-u  ,,  to  Mr.  Rush,  dated  July 
22d,  18i:3,  among  the  documents  accompany  inn;  Presides;  idams's  message  to  Con- 
gress of  January  Slst,  182G. 

With  regard  to  the  portion  of  these  instructions  here  extracted,  the  reader  is  re- 
ferred to  the  convention  of  17'J0  itself,  and  to  the  remailis  on  it  in  pp.  213,  258,  and 
318,  of  this  History,  from  which  it  will  be  seen  that  the  convention,  in  all  its  stipula- 
tions, was  simply  an  international  agreement  beixvc  m  Spain  and  Great  Britain,  bind- 
ing them  and  their  subjects  only  until  its  expiratioii,  which  took  place,  in  consequence 
of  the  war,  in  17U6,  and  applying  in  no  respect,  either  as  to  advantages  or  restrictions, 
to  any  other  nation  whatsoever;  and  that,  consequently,  other  nations  had  the  same 
right  to  occupy  the  vacant  coasts  of  America,  and  to  navigate  and  fish  in  the  adjacent 
seas,  within  ten  leagues,  (the  distance  defined  bj'  the  convention,)  and  even  within 
ten  miles,  of  the  parts  occupied  by  Spain,  after,  as  before,  the  signature  of  that  agree- 
ment; and  Spain  had  as  much  right,  after,  as  before,  that  event,  to  prohibit  them 
from  so  doing.  If  the  Nootka  convention  were,  as  asserted  by  the  secretary  of  state, 
a  definitive  settlement  of  general  principles  of  national  law  respecting  navigation 
and  fishery  in  the  seas,  and  trade  and  settlement  on  the  coasts,  here  mentioned,  it 
would  be  difficult  to  resist  the  pretensions  of  the  British  plenipotentiaries  with  regard 
to  the  territories  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  as  set  forth  in  the  statemtiU  (Proofs 
and  Illustrations,  letter  H)  presented  by  them  to  Mr.  Gallatin  in  1826. 


342 


TREATY   BETWEEN   RUSSIA   AND   GREAT   BRITAIN. 


[1825. 


of  fishing  and  trading  with  the  natives  of  tlie  country : "  it  being, 
however,  stipulated  by  the  remaining  fifth  article,  that  spirituous 
liquors,  fire-arms,  other  arms,  powder,  and  munitions  of  war,  are 
always  excepted  from  this  same  commerce  permitted  by  the  fourth 
article,  and  that,  in  case  of  contravention  of  this  part  of  the  agree- 
ment, the  nation  whose  citizens  or  subjects  may  have  committed 
the  delinquency,  shall  alone  have  the  right  to  punish  them.''*' 

This  convention  does  not  appear  to  offer  any  grounds  for  dispute 
as  to  the  construction  of  its  stipulations,  but  is,  on  the  contrary,  clear 
and  equally  favorable  to  both  nations.  The  rights  of  both  parties  to 
navigate  every  part  of  the  Pacific,  and  to  trade  with  vne  natives  of 
any  places  on  the  coasts  of  that  sea,  not  already  occupied,  are  first 
distinctly  acknowledged ;  after  which  it  is  agreed,  in  order  to  pre- 
vent future  difficulties,  that  each  should  submit  to  certain  limitations 
as  to  navigation,  trade,  and  settlement,  on  the  north-west  coasts  of 
America,  either  perpetually  or  during  a  fixed  period.  Neither  party 
claimed,  directly  or  by  inference,  the  immediate  sovereignty  of  any 
spot  on  the  American  coasts  not  occupied  by  its  citizens  or  sub- 
jects, or  acknowledged  the  right  of  the  other  to  the  possession  of 
any  spot  not  so  occupied ;  the  definitive  regulation  of  limits  being 
deferred  until  the  establishments  and  other  interests  of  the  two 
nations  in  that  quarter  of  the  world  should  have  acquired  such  a 
development  as  to  render  more  precise  stipulations  necessary. 

The  Russian  government,  however,  construed  this  convention  as 
giving  to  itself  the  absolute  sovereignty  of  all  the  west  coasts  of 
America  north  of  the  parallel  of  54  degrees  40  minutes,  while  deny- 
ing any  such  right  on  the  part  of  the  United  States  to  the  coasts 
extending  southward  from  that  line.  In  February,  1825,  a  treaty 
was  concluded  between  Russia  and  Great  Britain,  relative  to  North- 
West  America,  containing  provisions  similar  to  those  of  the  con- 
vention between  Russia  and  the  United  States,  expressed  in  nearly 
the  samt  words,  but  also  containing  many  other  provisions,  some 
of  which  are  directly  at  variance  with  the  evident  sense  of  the  last- 
mentioned  agreement.  Thus  it  is  established,  by  the  treaty,  that 
•*  the  line  of  demarJcation  between  the  possessions  of  the  high  contract- 
ing parties  upon  the  coast  of  the  continent,  and  the  islands  of 
America  to  the  north-west,"  shall  be  drawn  from  the  southernmost 
pomt  of  Prince  of  Wales's  Island,  in  latitude  of  54  degrees  40 


*  This  convention  will  be  found  at  length  among  the  Proofs  and  IlluEtrationi, 
in  the  concluding  part  of  this  volume,  under  the  letter  K,  No.  4. 


and  lUuEtratioM, 


1825.] 


TREATY   BETWEEN    GREAT   BRITAIN   AND    RUSSIA. 


343 


minutes  eastward,  to  the  great  inlet  in  the  continent,  called  Port' 
land  Channel,  and  along  the  middle  of  that  inlet,  to  the  56th 
degree  of  latitude,  whence  it  shall  follow  the  summit  of  the  mo'.m- 
tnins  bordering  the  coast,  within  ten  leagues,  north-westward,  to 
Mount  St.  £lia8,  and  >  thence  north,  in  the  course  of  the  141st 
meridian  west  from  Greenwich,  to  the  Frozen  Ocean ;  "  which 
line,"  says  the  treaty,  "  shall  form  the  limit  between  the  Russian 
and  the  British  possessions  in  the  continent  of  Amtrica  to  the  north- 
west ; "  it  being  also  agreed  that  the  British  should  forever  have 
the  right  to  navigate  any  streams  flowing  into  the  Pacific  from  the 
interior,  across  the  line  of  demarkation^* 

That  this  treaty  virtually  annulled  the  convention,  of  the  pre- 
ceding year,  between  Russia  and  the  United  States,  is  evident ;  for 
the  convention  rested  entirely  upon  the  assumption  that  the  United 
States  possessed  the  same  right  to  the  part  of  the  American  coast 
south  * .'  the  parallel  of  54  degrees  40  minutes,  which  Russia  pos- 
sessed to  the  part  north  of  that  parallel :  and  the  treaty  distinctly  ac- 
knowledged the  former  or  southern  division  of  the  coast  to  be  the 
property  of  Great  Britain.  It  does  not,  however,  appear  that  any 
representation  on  the  subject  was  addressed  by  the  American  gov- 
ernment to  that  of  Russia ;  and  the  vessels  of  the  United  States 
continued  to  frequent  all  the  unoccupied  parts  of  the  north-west 
coast,  and  to  trade  with  the  natives  uninterruptedly,  until  1834, 
when,  as  will  be  hereafter  shown,  they  were  formally  prohibited, 
by  the  Russian  authorities,  from  visiting  any  place  on  that  coast 
north  of  the  parallel  of  54  degrees  40  minutes,  on  the  ground  that 
their  right  to  do  so  had  expired,  agreeably  to  the  convention  of 
1824. 

In  December,  1824,  President  Monroe,  in  his  last  annual  mes- 
sage to  Congress,  recommended  the  establishment  of  a  military  post 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  or  at  some  other  point  within  the 
acknowledged  limits  of  the  United  States,  in  order  to  afford  pro- 
tection to  their  commerce  and  fisheries  in  the  Pacific,  to  conciliate 
the  Indians  of  the  north-west,  and  to  promote  the  intercourse  be- 

•  See  Proofs  and  Illustrations,  at  the  end  of  this  volume,  under  the  letter  K,  No.  5. 
Some  curious  pavliculars  relative  to  the  negotiation  which  led  to  this  treaty  may  be 
found  in  the  Political  Life  of  the  Hon.  George  Canning,  hy  A.  G.  Stapleton,  chap. 
siv.  Mr.  Canning,  it  seems,  was  anxious  for  the  conclusion  of  a  joint  convention 
between  Great  Britain,  the  United  States,  and  Russia,  as  regards  the  freedom  of 
navigation  of  the  Pacific,  until  the  appearance  of  tlie  declaration  in  the  message  of 
President  Monroe  above  mentioned,  after  which  ho  determined  only  to  treat  with 
each  of  the  other  parties  separately. 


ini'i 


1)1 


•«*< 


^'■'- 1  h 


■A 


iHf 


f-   '   el 


i 


I- 


/KP 


I  ', 


344 


MOVEMENTS    IN   CONGRESS. 


[1824. 


tween  those  territories  and  the  settled  portions  of  the  republic; 
to  effect  which  object,  he  advised  that  appropriations  should  be 
made  for  the  despatch  of  a  frigate,  with  engineers,  to  explore  the 
mouth  of  the  Columbia  and  the  adjacent  shores.  The  same 
measures  were,  in  the  following  year,  also  recommended  by  Presi- 
dent Adams,  among  the  various  plans  for  the  advantage  of  the 
United  States  and  of  the  world  in  general,  to  which  he  requested 
the  attention  of  Congress,  in  his  message,  at  the  commencement 
of  the  session.  In  compliance  with  this  recommendation,  a  com- 
mittee was  appointed  by  the  House  of  Representatives,  the  chairman 
of  which,  Mr.  Baylies,  of  Massachusetts,  presented  two  reports,* 
containing  numerous  details  with  respect  to  —  the  history  of  discove- 
ry and  trade  in  North- West  America,  —  the  geography,  soil,  climate, 
productions,  and  inhabitants,  of  the  portion  claimed  by  the  United 
States,  —  the  number  and  value  of  the  furs  procured  there,  —  the 
expenses  of  surveying  the  coasts  and  of  forming  military  establish- 
ments for  its  occupation,  and  many  other  matters  relating  to  thai, 
part  of  the  world ;  in  consideration  whereof,  the  committee  intro- 
duced a  bill  for  the  immediate  execution  of  the  measvires  proposed 
by  the  president.  This  bill  was  laid  on  the  table  of  the  House,  and 
the  subject  was  not  again  agitated  in  Congress  until  1828. 

Meanwhile,  the  period  of  ten  years,  during  which  the  countries 
claimed  by  the  United  States  or  by  Great  Britain,  west  of  the  Rocky 
Moimtains,  were,  agreeably  to  the  convention  of  1818,  to  remain 
froe  and  open  to  the  citizens  or  subjects  of  both  nations,  was  draw- 
ing to  a  close  ;  and  a  strong  desire  was  manifested,  on  the  part  of 
the  American  government,  that  some  definitive  arrangement  with 
regard  to  those  countries  should  be  concluded  between  the  two 
powers,  before  the  expiration  of  the  term.  The  British  secretary 
for  foreign  atTairs  also  signified  that  his  government  was  prepared 
to  enter  into  a  new  discussion  of  the  question  at  issue ;  and  a  nego- 
tiation with  these  objects  was  accordingly  commenced  between 
Mr.  Gallatin,  the  minister  plenipotentiary  of  the  United  States  at 
London,  and  Messrs.  Addington  and  Huskisson,  commissioners  on 
the  part  of  Great  B  lain. 

Before  relating  the  particulars  of  this  negotiation,  it  should  be 
observed  that  the  relative  positions  of  the  two  parties,  as  to  the 
occupancy  and  actual  possession  of  the  countries  in  question,  had 
been  materially  changed  since  the  conclusion  of  the  former  conven- 


i|-i:- . 


•  Dated  severally  January  16lh,  and  May  15th,  1836. 


1826.]      BRITISH    IN    (^UIET    POSSESSION    OF    THE    COLUMBIA.  MD 

tion  between  them.  The  union  of  the  rival  British  companies,  and 
the  extension  of  the  jurisdiction  of  the  courts  of  Upper  Canada  over 
the  territories  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  had  already  proved 
most  advantageous  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  which  had  at  the 
game  time  received  the  privilege  of  trading  in  that  territory,  to  the 
exclusion  of  all  other  British  subjects.  Great  efforts  were  made, 
and  vast  expenses  were  incurred,  by  this  company,  in  its  efforts  to 
found  settlements  on  the  Columbia  River,  and  to  acquire  influence 
over  the  natives  of  the  surrounding  country ;  and  so  successful  had 
been  those  efforts,  that  the  citizens  of  the  United  States  were 
bliged,  not  only  to  renounce  all  ideas  of  renewing  their  estab- 
lishments in  that  part  of  America,  but  even  to  withdraw  their 
vessels  from  its  coasts.  Indeed,  for  more  than  ten  years  after  the 
capture  of  Astoria  by  the  British,  scarcely  a  single  American  citizen 
was  to  be  seen  in  those  countries.  Trading  expeditions  were  sub- 
sequently made  from  Missouri  to  the  head-waters  of  the  Platte 
and  the  Colorado,  within  the  limits  of  California,  and  one  or  two 
hundred  hunters  and  trappers,  from  the  United  States,  were  gen- 
erally roving  through  that  region ;  but  the  Americans  had  no 
settlements  of  any  kind,  and  their  government  exercised  no  juris- 
diction whatsoever  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains. 

Under  such  favorable  circumstances,  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company 
could  not  fail  to  prosper.  Its  resources  were  no  longer  wasted  in 
disputes  with  rivals ;  its  operations  were  conducted  with  despatch 
and  certainty  ;  its  posts  were  extended,  and  its  means  of  communi- 
cation increased,  under  the  assurance  that  the  honor  of  the  British 
government  and  nation  was  thereby  more  strongly  interested  in  its 
behalf.  The  agents  of  the  company  were  seen  in  every  part  of  the 
continent,  north  and  north-west  of  the  United  States  and  Canada, 
from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific,  hunting,  trapping,  and  trading 
with  the  aborigines  ,  its  boats  were  met  on  every  stream  and  lake, 
conveying  British  goods  into  tlie  interior,  or  furs  to  the  great  deposi- 
tories on  each  ocean,  for  shipment  to  England  in  British  vessels ; 
and  the  utmost  order  and  regularity  were  maintained  throughout  by 
the  supremacy  of  British  laws.  Of  the  trading  posts,  many  were 
fortified,  and  could  be  defended  by  their  inmates  —  men  inured  to 
hardships  and  dangers — against  all  attacks  which  might  be  appre- 
hended ;  and  the  whole  vast  expanse  of  territory  above  described, 
including  the  regions  drained  by  the  Columbia,  was,  in  fact,  occu- 
pied by  British  forces,  and  governed  by  British  laws,  though  there 
44 


!  tr 


346 


NEGOTIATION    AT   LONDON. 


[1826. 


im  I 


wu  not  a  single  British  soldier — technically  speaking — within 
its  limits. 

Considering  this  state  of  things,  and  also  the  characters  of  the 
two  nations  engaged  in  the  controversy  and  of  their  governments, 
it  may  readily  be  supposed  that  many  and  great  obstacles  would 
exist  in  the  way  of  a  definitive  and  amicable  arrangement  of  the 
questions  at  issue,  between  the  Americans  ever  solicitous  with 
respect  to  territory  which  they  have  any  reason  to  regard  as  their 
own,  and  the  British  with  whom  the  acquisition  and  security  of 
commercial  advantages  always  form  a  paramount  object  of  policy. 
To  the  difficulties  occasioned  by  the  conflict  of  such  material 
interests,  in  this  particulat  case,  wefc  added  those  arising  from  the 
pride  of  the  parties,  and  their  mutual  jealousy,  which  seems  ever  to 
render  them  adverse  to  any  settlement  of  a  disputed  point,  even 
though  it  should  be  manifestly  advantageous  to  them  both. 

In  the  first  conference,*  the  British  commissioners  declared  that 
their  government  was  still  ready  to  abide  by  the  proposition  made 
to  Mr.  Rush,  in  1824,  'or  a  line  of  separation  between  the  territories 
of  the  two  nations,  drawn  from  the  Rocky  Mountains,  along  the 
49th  parallel  of  latitude  to  the  north-easternmost  branch  of  the 
Columbia,  and  thence  down  that  river  to  the  sea ;  giving  to  Great 
Britain  all  the  territories  north,  and  to  the  United  States  all  south, 
of  that  line.  Mr.  Gallatin,  in  reply,  agreeably  to  instructions  from 
his  government,  repeated  the  offer  made  by  himself  and  Mr.  Rush, 
in  1818,  for  the  adoption  of  the  49th  parallel  as  the  line  of  separa- 
tion from  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  the  Pacific,  with  the  additional 
provisions,  —  that,  if  the  said  line  should  cross  any  of  the  branches 
of  the  Columbia  at  points  from  which  they  are  navigable  by  boats 
to  the  main  stream,  the  navigation  of  such  branches,  and  of  the 
main  stream,  should  be  perpetually  free  and  common  to  the  people 
of  both  nations  —  that  the  citizens  or  subjects  of  neither  party 
should  thenceforward  make  any  settlements  in  the  territories  of  the 
other;  but  that  all  settlements  already  formed  by  the  people  of 
oither  nation  within  the  limits  of  the  other,  might  be  occupied  and 
used  by  them  for  ten  years,  and  no  longer,  during  which  all  the 
remaining  provisions  of  the  existing  convention  should  continue  in 
force.  The  British  refused  to  accede  to  this  or  any  other  plan  of 
partition  which  should  deprive  t'lem  of  the  northern  bank  of  the 

•  Preeident  Adams's  message  to  Congress  of  December  28th,  1827,  and  the  ec- 
corapanying  documents. 


1826.] 


NEGOTIATION    SUSPENDED. 


347 


Columbia,  and  the  right  of  navigating  that  river  to  and  from  the 
sea ;  though  they  expressed  their  willingness  to  yield  to  the  United 
States,  in  addition  to  what  they  first  offered,  a  detached  territory, 
extending,  on  the  Pacific  and  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  from  Bulfinch's 
Harbor  to  Hood's  Canal,  and  to  stipulate  that  no  works  should  at 
any  time  he  erected  at  the  mouth  or  on  the  banks  of  the  Columbia, 
calculated  to  impede  tlie  free  navigation  of  that  river,  by  either 
party.  The  Americans,  however,  being  equally  determined  not  to 
give  up  their  title  to  any  part  of  the  country  south  of  the  49th  par- 
allel, all  expectation  of  effecting  a  definitive  disposition  of  the  claims 
was  abandoned. 

The  plenipotentiaries  then  directed  their  attention  to  the  sub- 
ject of  a  renewal  of  the  arrangement  for  the  use  and  occupancy 
of  the  territories  in  question  by  the  people  of  both  nations.  With 
this  view,  the  British  proposed  that  the  existing  arrangement 
should  be  renewed  according  to  the  terms  of  the  third  article 
of  the  convention  of  October  20th,  1818,  for  fifteen  years  from 
the  date  of  the  expiration  of  that  convention ;  with  the  addi- 
tional provisions,  however,  that,  during  those  fifteen  years,  neither 
power  should  assume  or  exercise  any  right  of  exclusive  sovereignty 
or  dominion  over  any  j  art  of  the  territory ;  and  that  no  settlement 
then  made,  or  which  might  thereafter  be  made,  by  either  nation 
in  those  countries,  should  ever  be  adduced  in  support  of  any 
claim  to  such  sovereignty  or  dominion.  This  proposition  was  re- 
ceived by  Mr.  Gallatin  for  reference  to  his  government,  although 
he  sar/  at  once  that  the  additional  provisions  were  inadmissible ;  and 
the  negotiation  was,  in  consequence,  suspended  for  some  months. 

During  this  first  period  of  the  negotiation,  the  claims  aid  pre- 
tensions of  the  two  nations  respecting  the  countries  in  question,  were 
developed  and  discussed  more  fully  than  on  any  previous  occasion, 
not  only  in  the  conferences  between  the  plenipotentiaries,  but  also 
in  written  statements,*  formally  presented  on  each  side.     As  nearly 


*  The  statement  of  the  British  commissioners  is  presented  entire  in  the  Proofs  and 
Illustrations,  under  the  letter  H,  in  order  that  no  doubt  may  subsist  as  to  the  nature 
of  the  claims  of  Great  Britain,  and  of  the  evidence  and  arguments  by  which  they 
are  supported.  As  a  state  paper,  it  will,  perhaps,  be  found  unworthy  of  the  nation  on 
whose  "■'.rt  it  was  produced,  and  of  at  loast  one  of  the  persons  from  whom  it  pro- 
ceeded ;  many  will  regret  to  see  appended  to  it  the  name  of  William  Huskisson,  and 
to  learn  that  it  received  the  approval  of  George  Canning. 

The  counter-statement  of  Mr.  Gallatin,  a  most  able  document,  is  omitted  only  be- 
Muse  its  insertion  would  have  too  much  increased  the  bulk  of  the  volame. 


-Wf^ 

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z^.9 


CL  .IMS    or    THE    UNITED    STATUS. 


ri836. 


every  point  touched  by  either  of  the  parties  has  been  awly  ex- 
amined minutely  in  the  foregoing  poges,  it  only  remains  now  to 
rt'npitulate  them,  and  to  add  some  remarks,  which  could  not 
have  been  conveniently  introduced  n'  nn  earlier  period 

Mr.  Gallatin  claimed  for  the  Unit)  d  --'ales  the  possossion  of  the 
territory  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  between  the  42d  and  the 
49th  parallels  of  latitude,  on  the  grounds  of — 

The  acquisition  by  the  United  Rtntes  of  the  titles  of  France 
through  the  Louisiana  treaty,  and  the  titles  of  Spain  through  the 
Florida  treaty ; 

The  discovery  of  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  the  first  explora- 
tion of  the  countries  through  which  that  river  flows,  and  the  esiab- 
lishmcnt  of  the  first  posts  and  settlements  in  those  <  countries  by 
American  citizens ; 

The  virtual  recognition  of  the  title  of  the  United  States,  by  the 
British  government,  in  the  restitution,  agreeably  to  the  first  article 
of  the  treaty  of  Ghent,  of  the  p^si  near  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia, 
which  had  been  taken  during  the  war ; 

And,  lastly,  upon  the  ground  of  contiguity,  which  should  give  the 
United  States  a  stronger  right  to  those  territories  than  could  be 
advanced  by  any  other  power  —  a  doctrine  always  maintained  by 
Great  Britain,  from  the  period  of  her  earliest  attempts  at  colonisa- 
tion in  America,  as  clearly  proved  by  her  charters,  in  which  the 
whole  breadth  of  the  continent,  between  certain  parallels  of  lati- 
tude, was  granted  to  colonies  established  only  at  points  on  the 
borders  of  the  Atlantic* 

Messrs.  Huskisson  and  Addington,  on  the  other  hand,  declared 
that  Great  Britain  claims  no  exclusive  sovereignty  over  any  portion 
of  the  territory  on  the  Pacific  between  the  42d  and  the  49th  paral- 
lels of  latitude ;  her  present  claim,  not  in  respect  to  any  part,  but 
to  the  whole,  being  limited  to  a  right  of  joint  occupancy,  in  com- 
mon with  other  states,  leaving  the  right  of  exclusive  dominion  in 
abeyance.  Thoy  then  proceeded  to  examine  the  grounds  of  the 
claims  of  the  United  States,  none  of  which  they  admitted  to  be 

*  "If,"  uys  Mr.  Gallatin,  "some  trading  factories  on  the  shores  of  Hudson's  Bay 
have  been  considered  by  Great  Britain  as  giving  an  exclusive  right  of  occupancy  b3 
far  as  the  Rocky  Mountains;  if  the  infant  settlements  on  the  more  southern  Atlantic 
shores  justified  a  claim  thence  to  the  South  Seae  and  which  was  actually  enforced  to 
the  Mississippi,  —  that  uf'  the  millions  already  within  reach  of  those  seas  cannot  con- 
sistently be  rejected."  This  argument,  it  may  be  added,  has  been  since  constantly 
increasing  in  force. 


nnapl! 


ipancy,  in  com- 


1896.] 


CLAIMS    or    UHCAT   BRITAIN. 


349 


valid,  except  that  acquired  from  Spain,  through  tho  Florida  treaty, 
ir.  1819 ;  and  the  right  thus  acquired  they  pronounced  to  be  nothing 
more  than  the  right  lociired  to  Spain,  in  common  with  Great  Brit- 
ain, by  the  Mootka  convention,  in  1790,  to  trade  and  ttcttlo  in  any 
part  of  those  countries,  and  to  navigate  their  waters.  Dismissing 
the  claims  of  Spain,  on  the  grounds  of  discovery,  prior  to  1790, 
as  futile  and  visionary,  and  inferior  to  those  of  Great  Britain  on  t'lo 
same  grounds,  they  maintained  that  all  arguineniis  and  pretensions 
of  either  of  those  powers,  whether  resting  on  discovery  or  on  any 
other  consideration,  were  dcfinit'  1y  set  at  rest  by  tho  Nootka 
convention,  after  the  signatui'  h,  tho  title  was  no  longer  to 

he  traced  in  vague   discovt  ">f  them  admitted  to  be 

api    ryphal,  but   in  tho  text  .  .ons  of  that  convention 

itself;  and  th.it,  as  the  Nootka  c«>iivtjiiUoii  applied  to  all  parts  of  the 
north-west  coast  of  America  not  occupied,  in  1790,  by  either  of 
the  parties,  it  of  course  included  any  portion  of  Louisiana  which 
might  then  have  extended,  on  the  Pacific,  north  of  the  northern- 
most Spanish  settlement,  and  which  could  not,  therefore,  bo  claimed 
by  the  United  States,  in  virtue  of  the  treaty  for  the  cession  of  Lou- 
isiana to  that  republic,  in  1803.,. 

Having  assumed  this  ground,  it  was  scarcely  necessary  for  the 
British  plenipotentiaries  to  go  further  into  the  examination  of  the 
titles  of  the  United  States ;  and  they  probably  acted  on  this  suppo- 
sition, as  it  is  otherwise  impossible  to  account  for  the  gross  mis- 
statements with  regard  to  the  discoveries  of  the  Americans,  the 
extravagant  and  unfounded  assumptions,  and  the  illogical  deduc- 
tions, in  the  document  presented  by  tht  in  to  Mr.  Gallatin,  on  the 
part  of  their  government.  Thus,  with  regard  to  the  discovery  of 
the  mouth  of  the  Columbia ,  they  insisted  that  "  Mr.  Meares,  a  lieu- 
tenant in  the  royal  navy,  who  had  been  sent  by  the  East  India 
Company  on  a  trading  expedition  to  the  north-west  coasts  of 
America,"  really  effected  that  discovery  four  years  before  Gray  is 
even  pretended  to  have  entered  the  river;*  though  they  indeed 
admitted  that  "  Mr.  Graj ,  finding  himself  in  the  bay  formed  by  the 
discharge  of  the  waters  of  the  Columbia  into  the  Pacific,  was  the 
first  to  ascertain  that  this  bay  formed  the  outlet  of  a  great  river,  a 
discovery  which  had  escaped  Lieutenant  Meares  "  when  he  entered 
the  same  bay ;  but  that,  even  supposing  the  priority  of  Gray's  dis- 
covery to  be  proved,  it  was  of  no  consequence  in  the  case,  as  the 

•  See  p.  177. 


!  ! 


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Photographic 

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23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  MSM 

(716)  •72-4503 


4^^ 


860 


CLAIMS    OF    GREAT   BRITAIN. 


[1826. 


li 


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1  ■     ?f 


country  in  which  it  was  made  "falls  within  the  provisions  of  the 
convention  of  1790."  They  refused  to  allow  that  the  claims  of  the 
United  States  are  strengthened  by  the  exploration  of  the  country 
through  which  the  Columbia  flows,  as  performed  in  1805-6  by 
Lewis  and  Clarke,  <<  because,  if  not  before,  at  least  in  the  same  and 
subsequent  years,"  the  agents  of  the  North-West  Company  had 
established  posts  on  the  northern  brarch  of  the  river,  and  were 
extending  them  down  to  its  mouth,  when  they  heard  of  the  forma- 
tion of  the  American  post  at  that  place  in  181 1.*  That  the  restora- 
tion of  Astoria,  in  1818,  conveyed  a  virtual  acknowledgment  by 
Great  Britain  of  the  title  of  the  United  States  to  the  country  in 
which  that  post  is  situated,  was  also  denied,  on  the  ground  that 
letters  protesting  against  such  title  were,  at  the  time  of  the  restora- 
tion, addressed,  by  members  of  the  British  ministry,  to  British  agents 
in  the  United  States  and  on  the  Columbia.!  It  is  needless  to  add 
any  thing  to  what  has  been  already  said  on  these  points,  in  order 
to  prove  the  entire  groundlessness  of  the  assertions  contained  in  the 
British  statement  with  regard  to  them. 

The  charters  granted  by  the  sovereigns  of  Great  Britain  and 
France,  conveying  to  individuals  or«companies  large  tracts  of  terri- 
tory in  America,  were  represented,  by  the  British  plenipotentiaries, 
as  being  nothing  ''  more,  in  fact,  than  a  cession  to  the  grantee  or 
grantees  of  whatever  rights  the  grantor  might  suppose  himself  to 
possess,  to  the  exclusion  of  other  subjects  of  the  same  nation, — 
binding  and  restraining  those  only  who  were  within  the  jurisdic- 
tion of  the  grantor,  and  of  no  force  or  validity  against  the  subjects 
of  other  states,  until  recognized  by  treaty,  and  thereby  becoming  a 
part  of  in  rnational  law."  The  erroneousness  of  these  views 
is  obvious,  and  was  easily  demonstrated  by  Mr.  Gallatin,  who 
showed,  by  reference  to  the  history  of  British  colonization  and 
dominion  in  America,  that  the  royal  grantors  of  territories  in  that 
continent  did  consider  their  charters  as  binding  on  all,  whether  their 
own  subjects  or  not,  and  with  regard  to  countries  first  discovered 
and  settled  by  people  of  other  nations,  whenever  they  were  found 
to  be  within  the  limits  th'is  indicated.  These  facts  were  cited,  not 
in  vindication  of  the  justice  of  those  grants,  but  merely  to  prove 
in  what  light  they  had  been  regarded  by  Great  Britain :  and,  if  the 
principle  thus  assumed  by  that  power,  and  maintained  from  1580 
to  1783,  as  relating  to  Atlantic  colonies,  were  correct,  she  could  not 


See  p.  397. 


t  See  p.  310. 


1826.] 


DETERMINATIONS    Or    GREAT  BRITAIN. 


deny  its  application  to  the  United  States,  now  the  owners  of  Lou- 
isiana.* 

The  British  plenipotentiaries  were,  however,  clear  and  explicit  as 
to  the  intentions  of  their  government,  which  were  declared,  at  the 
conclusion  of  their  statement,  in  terms  of  moderation  and  forbear- 
ance truly  edifying.  Great  Britain,  they  assert,  claims,  at  presentf 
nothing  more  than  the  rights  of  trade,  navigation,  and  settlement, 
in  the  part  of  the  world  under  consideration,  agreeably  to  the  pro- 
visions of  the  Nootka  convention,  the  basis  of  the  law  of  nations 
with  regard  to  those  territories  and  waters,  under  the  protection  of 
which  many  important  British  interests  have  grown  up;  and  she 
admits  that  the  United  States  have  the  same  rights,  but  none  other, 
although  they  have  been  exercised  only  in  one  instance,  and  not 
at  all  since  1813.  In  the  territory  between  the  42d  and  the  49th 
parallels  of  latitude,  are  many  British  posts  and  settlements,  for  the 
trade  and  supply  of  which,  the  free  navigation  of  the  Columbia, 
to  and  from  the  sea,  is  indispensable;  the  United  States  possess 
not  a  single  post  or  settlement  of  any  kind  in  that  whole  region. 
Great  Britain,  nevertheless,  for  the  sake  of  peace  and  good  under- 
standing, agrees  to  submit  to  a  definitive  partition  of  that  territory, 
giving  to  the  United  States  the  whole  division  south  of  the  Co- 
lumbia, and  a  large  tract  containing  an  excellent  harbor,  north  of 
that  river ;  and,  the  United  States  having  decUned  to  accede  to  this 
proposition,  it  only  remains  for  Great  Britain  to  maintain  and  up- 


^ ' 


*  "  This  construction  does  not  appear  either  to  have  been  that  intended  at  the  time 
by  the  grantors,  or  to  have  governed  the  subsequent  conduct  of  Great  Britain.  By 
excepting  from  the  grants,  as  was  generally  the  case,  such  lands  as  were  already  oc- 
cupied by  the  subjects  of  other  civilized  nations,  it  was  clearly  implied  that  no  other 
exception  was  contemplated,  and  that  the  grants  were  intended  to  include  all  unoccu- 
pied lands  within  their  respective  boundaries,  to  the  exclusion  of  all  other  persons  or 
nations  whatsoever.  In  point  of  fact,  the  whole  country  drained  by  the  several  riven 
emptying  into  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  the  mouths  of  which  were  within  those  c'larttirs, 
lias,  from  Hudson's  Bay  to  Florida,  and,  it  is  believed,  without  exception,  been  occu- 
pied and  held  by  virtue  of  those  charters.  Not  only  has  this  principle  beeu  fiiUy 
confirmed,  but  it  has  been  notoriously  enforced  much,  beyond  the  sources  of  the  rivers 
on  which  the  settlements  were  formed.  The  priority  of  the  French  settlements  on 
the  rivers  flowing  westwardly  from  the  Alleghany  Mountains  into  the  Mississippi  was 
altogether  disregarded ;  and  the  rights  of  the  Atlantic  colonies  to  extend  beyond  those 
mountains,  as  growing  out  of  the  contiguity  of  territory,  and  as  asserted  in  the  earliest 
charters,  was  eflfectually  and  successfully  enforced." 

The  American  minister  might  also  have  cited  the  charters  granted  to  the  Virginia 
Company  by  King  James  I.,  in  1609  and  1611,  in  virtue  of  whicl>,  the  Dutch  settle- 
ments on  the  Hudson  River,  in  a  country  first  discovered,  explored,  and  occupied, 
under  the  flag  of  the  United  Provinces,  were,  in  1664,  —  forty  years  after  the  disso- 
lution of  the  company, — during  peace  between  the  two  nations,  seized  by  British 
forces,  as  being  included  in  the  territories  conceded  to  that  company. 


868 


BBITISU    PROPOSITIONS   REJECTED. 


[1827. 


'if? 


hold  the  qualified  rights  which  she  now  possesses  over  the  whole  of 
the  territory  in  question.  «  To  the  interests  which  British  industry 
and  enterprise  have  created  Great  Britain  owes  protection.  That 
protection  will  be  given,  both  as  regards  settlement  and  freedom 
of  trade  and  navigation,  with  every  attention  not  to  infringe  the 
coordinate  rights  of  the  United  States ;  it  being  the  earnest  desire 
of  the  British  government,  so  long  as  the  joint  occupancy  con- 
tinues, to  regulate  its  own  obligations  by  the  same  rule  which 
governs  the  obligations  of  any  other  occupying  party."  Thus,  in 
1826,  the  British  government  based  its  claims,  with  regard  to  the 
territories  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  entirely  on  the  Nootka 
convention  of  1790,  and  the  acts  of  occupation  by  its  subjects 
under  that  agreement ;  the  abrogation  of  which,  by  the  war  between 
the  parties,  in  1796,  —  ten  years  before  a  single  spot  in  those  territo- 
ries had  been  occupied  by  a  British  subject,  —  has  been  already  so 
fiiUy  demonstrated,*  that  any  further  observations  would  be  super- 
fluous. 

The  proposition  of  the  British  plenipotentiaries,  with  regard  to  the 
renewal  of  the  existing  arrangement  for  ten  years,  was  rejected  by 
the  president  of 'the  United  States,f  on  the  grounds  —  that,  so  far  as 
it  would  tend  to  prevent  the  Americans  from  exercising  exclusive 
sovereignty  at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  River,  it  would  be  con- 
trary to  their  rights,  as  acknowledged  by  the  treaty  of  Ghent,  and 
by  the  restitution  of  the  place  agreeably  to  that  treaty ;  —  that  the 
proposed  additional  provisions  do  not  define,  but  leave  open  to 
disputation,  the  acts  which  might  be  deemed  an  exercise  of  exclu- 
sive sovereignty;  —  and  that,  from  the  nature  of  ^he  institutions  of 
the  United  States,  their  rights  in  the  territory  "dstion  must  be 
protected,  and  their  citizens  must  be  secured  in  i..  jn  lawful  pursuits, 
by  some  species  of  government,  different  from  that  which  it  has 
been,  or  may  be,  the  pleasure  of  Gi<>^.t  Britain  to  establish  there. 
Mr.  Gallatin,  on  the  24th  of  May,  1827,  communicated  to  the 
British  commissioners  the  fact  of  the  rejection  of  their  proposition, 
and  the  reasons  for  it,  declaring,  at  the  same  time,  formally,  in 
obedience  to  special  instructions,  that  his  government  did  not  hold 
itself  bound  hereafter  in  consequence  of  any  proposal  which  it  had 
made  for  a  line  of  separation  between  the  territories  of  the  two 
nations  beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains ;  but  wovdd  consider  itself  at 
liberty  to  contend  for  the  fuU  extent  of  the  claims  of  the  United  States. 


*  See  the  ezaminationB  of  this  queation,  at  pp.  213, 257,  and  318. 

t  Letter  of  Febiuary  24th,  1827,  from  the  Hon.  Henry  Clay  to  Mr.  Gallatin. 


1827.] 


NXOOTIATIOIT   AT  LONDOU   BCBinnO. 


Ml 


The  British  plenipotentiaries,  having  entered  <m'  the  protocol  of 
the  conferences  a  declaration  with  regard  to  the  previous  dairoc 
and  propositions  of  their  government,  similar  to  that  mada  on  Xh% 
part  of  the  United  States  by  Mr,  Gallatin,  then  intimated  their 
readiness  to  agree  to  a  simple  renewal  of  the  terms  of  the  existing 
arrangement,  for  ten  years  from  the  date  of  the  expiration  of  th<9 
convention  of  1818;  provided,  however,  that,  in  so  doing,  (hey 
should  append  to  the  new  convention*  in  some  way,  a  declara^ 
tion  of  what  they  considered  to  be  its  true  intent,  namely,*^ that 
both  partiea  were  reitricted,  during  iti  continuance  in  force,  from 
exercising,  or  astuming  to  themaeheB  the  right  to  exerdie,  an»f  ^t^tnif 
sine  sovereignty  or  jurisdiction  over  the  territories  mentioned  in  ike 
agreement.  The  objections  to  this  urangement  were  pearly  w 
strong  as  to  that  which  had  already  been  proposed  and  refused; 
Mr.  Gallatin,  however,  desired  to  know  what  species  of  acts  the 
British  would  consider  as  an  exercise  of  .exclusive  sovereignty  or 
jurisdiction.  In  reply,  he  was  iofornsed  that  Great  Britain  would 
not  complain  of  the  extension,  over  the  regions  west  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  of  the  jurisdiction  of  any  territory,  having  for  iti  eastern 
boundary  a  line  within  the  acknowledged  boundaries  of  the  UuiUd 
States;  provided — that  no*custom-houBfi  should  be  erected,  nor 
any  duties  or  charges  on  tonnage,  merchandise,  or  commerce,  he 
rused,  by  either  party,  in  the  country  west  of  the  Rodky  Mountains 
—  that  the  cjl^fias  or  subjeCvS  of  the  two  powers  residing  in  or 
resorting  to  those  countries,  should  be  qflienablc  only  to  the  jurift- 
diction  nf  jljgjr  own  nation  respectively  —  and  thaTno  military 
42gst  should  be  established  by  either  party  in  those  countries ;  or, 
at  least,  no  such  post  as  would  command  the  navigation  of  the 
Columbia  or  any  of  its  branches. 

To  the  first  of  these  conditions,  Mr.  Gallatin  saw  no  strong  reason 
to  object.  With  regard  to  the  second,  he  considered  it  indispenaaUe 
tftat  the  respective  jurisdiction  of  the  courts  of  justice  should  be 
determined  by  positive  compact,  as  it  would  scarcely  be  possible 
otherwise  to  prevent  collisions ;  and  upon  the  third  condition,  he 
believed  it  would  be  very  difficult  to  arrive  at  a  correct  under- 
standing, as  the  British  government  would  not  admif  the  posts  of 
the  Hu'tson's  Bay  Company  to  be  military  establishments.  On  all 
these  points,  the  two  governments  might  afterwards  negotiate; 
but  the  American  minister  refused  to  assent  to  any  declaration  or 
explanation  whatsoever  respecting  the  terms  under  which  the  terri- 
tories in  question  were  to  remain  open  to  the  people  of  the  two 
45 


m 


H 


k 


41 


354 


EENEWAL  OF  THE  CONVENTION  Or  1818. 


[1827. 


hi 


countries ;  and  the  British  were  equally  resolved  not  to  agree  to  a 
renewal  of  the  engagement  for  a  Jixed  period  of  time,  without  such 
a  declaration. 

Finally,  on  the  6th  of  August,  1827,  a  convention  was  signed  by 
the  plenipotentiaries,  to  the  effect,  that  the  provisions  of  the  third 
article  of  the  convention  of  October  20th,  1818,  —  rendering  all 
the  territories  claimed  by  Great  Britain  or  by  the  United  States, 
west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  free  and  open  to  the  citizens  or 
subje  ts  of  both  nations  for  ten  years, — should  be  further  extended 
for  an  indefinite  period ;  either  party  being,  however,  at  liberty  to 
annul  and  abrogate  the  agreement,  on  giving  a  year's  notice  of  its 
intention  to  the  other.*  This  convention  was  submitted  to  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States  in  the  following  winter,  and,  having 
been  approved  by  that  body,  it  was  immediately  ratified. 

In  relating  the  circumstances  connected  with  the  adoption  of  the 
convention  of  October,  1818,  the  opinion  was  expressed,  that  it  was 
perhaps  the  most  wise,  as  well  as  most  just,  arrangement  which 
could  then  have  been  made ;  and  this  renewal  of  the  arrangement 
for  an  indefinite  period,  leaving  each  of  the  parties  at  liberty  to 
abrogate,  it,  after 'a  reasonable  notice  to  the  other,  appears  to  merit 
the  same  commendation.  No  unworthy  concession  was  made, 
no  loss  of  dignity  or  right  was  sustained,  on  either  side ;  and  to 
break  the  amicable  and  mutually  profitable  relations,  then  subsisting 
between  the  two  countries,  on  a  question  of  mere  title  to  the  pos- 
session of  territories  from  which  neither  could  derive  any  immediate 
benefit  of  consequence,  would  have  been  impolitic  and  unrighteous. 
The  advantages  of  the  convention  were,  in  1827,  as  in  1818,  nearly 
equal  to  both  nations;  but  the  difference  was,  on  the  whole,  in 
favor  of  the  United  States.  The  British  might,  indeed,  derive  more 
profit  from  the  fur  trade  as  carried  on  by  their  organized  Hudson's 
Bay  Company,  than  the  Americans  could  expect  to  obtain  by  the 
individual  efforts  of  their  citizens ;  but  the  value  of  that  trade  is 
much  less  than  is  generally  supposed:  no  settlements  could  be 
formed  in  the  territory  beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains,  by  which  it 
could  acquire  a  population,  while  the  arrangement  subsisted ;  and 
the  facilities  Tor  occupying  the  territory  at  a  future  period,  when  its 
occupation  by  the  United  States  should  become  expedient,  would 
undoubtedly  have  increased  in  a  far  greater  ratio  on  their  part  than 
on  that  of  Great  Britain.     For  the  difficulties  which  must  arise 


»;■■/■■ 


*  Proofs  and  Illiutrationg,  letter  I,  No.  6. 


m'\ 


1829.] 


PROCEEDINGS    IN    CONQRESS. 


855 


whenever  the  convention  is  abrogated,  even  agreeably  to  the  man- 
ner therein  stipulated,  it  became,  of  course,  the  duty  of  each 
government  to  provide  in  time. 

In  the  session  of  Congress  following  that  in  which  the  new  con- 
vention with  Great  Britain  had  been  approved,  the  subject  of  the 
occupation  of  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  River  was  again  discussed ; 
and,  after  a  long  series  of  debates,  in  which  the  most  eminent  mem- 
bers of  the  House  of  Representatives  took  part,  a  bill  was  reported, 
whereby  the  president  was  authorized  to  cause  tho  territory  west 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains  to  be  explored,  and  forts  and  garrisons  to 
be  established  in  any  proper  places,  between  tho  parallels  of  42 
degrees  and  54  degrees  40  minutes ;  and  also  to  extend  the  juris- 
diction of  the  United  States  over  those  countries,  as  regards  citizens 
of  the  Union.  The  adoption  of  these  measures  was  urged,  on  the 
ground  that  it  was  the  duty  of  the  government  to  make  good,  by 
occupation,  the  right  of  the  United  States,  which  was  pronounced 
unquestionable,  lest,  by  neglect,  the  country  should  fall  irrevocably 
into  the  possession  of  another  power,  which  had  unjustly  contested 
that  right :  and,  as  inducements  to  pursue  this  course,  pictures  most 
flattering  were  presented  of  the  soil,  climate,  and  productions,  of 
the  regions  watered  by  the  Columbia,  and  of  the  various  advantages 
which  would  be  secured  to  the  citizens  of  the  Union  engaged  in  the 
trade  of  the  Pacific  Ocean,  by  the  settlement  of  those  coasts.  The 
bill  was  opposed,  as  infringing  the  convention'  recently  concluded 
with  Great  Britain ;  in  addition  to  which,  it  was  contended,  that, 
were  all  opposition  on  the  part  of  that  or  other  powers  removed, 
and  the  right  of  the  United  States  established  and  universally 
recognized,  the  occupation  of  the  countries  in  question  in  the 
manner  proposed,  would  be  useless,  from  their  extreme  barrenness, 
fiom  the  dangers  to  navigation  presented  by  their  coasts,  and  from 
the  difficulty  of  communicating  with  them  either  by  sea  or  by  land ; 
and  such  occupation  might  be  injurious,  as  citizens  of  the  United 
Stated  would  be  thus  induced  to  settle  in  those  countries,  and  their 
government  would  find  itself  bound  to  protect  and  maintain  them, 
at  great  expense,  without  a  commensurate  advr^ncement  of  the  pub- 
lic good.  In  the  course  of  the  debates,  several  amendments  were 
proposed  to  the  bill,  but  it  was  finally  rejected  on  the  9th  of 
January,  1829 ;  and,  for  many  years  afterwards,  very  little  atten- 
tion was  bestowed,  by  any  branch  of  the  government  of  the 
United  States,  to  matter^  connected  with  the  territories  west  of 
the  Rocky  Mountains. 


Lii'iii 


r  ■ 


i) 


■■ 

!■    , 

Bar 

Hi' 

] 

^.,>' 

U— 

866 


CHAPTER   XVII. 


1823  TO  1844 


Few  QtiMM  of  th«  United  State*  in  the  Countriw  wert  of  the  Rocky  Mountnini 
between  1813  tnd  18S3— Tndinf  ExpcdiUoni  of  Aehley,  Sublette,  Smith,  Pilclier, 
Pittie,  Bonnerille,  and  Wyeth  —  MiMionaries  from  the  United  SUtei  form  Ettab- 
liMhrnenta  on  the  Columbia  —  Firet  Printing  PrcM  aet  up  in  Oregon  —  Oppoii- 
tion  of  the  Hudaon'a  Bay  Company  to  the  American! ;  how  exerted  —  Contro- 
Teny  between  the  United  States  and  Huasia  —  Dispute  between  the  Hudion'i 
Bay  and  the  RuHian  American  Companiee;  how  terminated  —  California ;  Cap- 
ture of  Monterey  by  Commodore  Jones— The  Sandwich  Islands;  Proceedings  of 
the  Mifsionaries*;  Expuliiion  of  the  Catholic  PriesU,  and  their  Reinstatement  by  a 
fieneh.  Force— The  Sandwich  lalanda  temporarily  oooupied  by  Um  British. 


It  has  already  been  said,  that,  during  the  ten  years  immediately 
following  the  dissolution  of  the  Pacific  Fur  Company,  and  the 
seizure  of  its  establishments  on  the  Columbia  by  the  British,  few, 
if  any,  citizens  of  the  United  States  entered  the  countries  west 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains ;  although,  within  that  period,  the  facilities 
for  conitnunication  between  those  countries  and  the  settled  portions 
of  the  American  Union  had  been  increased  by  the  introd'iction  of 
steam  vessels  on  the  Mississippi  and  its  tributary  rivers.  Nearly 
all  the  trade  of  the  regions  of  the  Upper  Mississippi  and  the 
Missouri  was  then  carried  on  by  the  old  North  American  Fur 
Company,  at  the  head  of  which  Mr.  Astor  still  remained ;  and  by 
another  association,  called  the  Columbia  Fur  Company,  formed  in 
18P2,  composed  principally  of  persons  who  had  been  in  the'  service 
of  the  North- West  Company,  and  were  dissatisfied  with  their  new 
masters.  The  Columbia  Company  established  several  posts  on  the 
upper  waters  of  the  Mississippi,  the  Missouri,  and  the  Ye^owstone, 
which  were,  however,  transferred  to  the  North  American  Company, 
on  the  junction  of  the  two  bodies  in  1326.  The  Americans  had  also 
begun  to  trade  with  the  northernmost  provinces  of  Mexico,  before 
the  overthrow  of  the  Spanish  authority  in  that  country ;  after  which 
event,  large  caravans  passed  regularly,  in  each  summer,  between 
St.  Louis  and  Santa  F£,  the  capital  of  New  Mexico,  on  the  head- 
waters of  the  River  Bravo  del  Nort6. 


1826.] 


TRAOINQ    BXPEOITIONI   OF    ASHLCT. 


867 


The  flrit  attempt  to  reettabliih  commercial  communicationf 
between  tho  United  States  and  the  torritoriei  weit  of  the  Rocky 
Moantaini,  was  made  by  W.  H.  Ashley,  of  St.  Louis,  who  had  been, 
for  some  time  previous,  engaged  in  the  fur  trade  of  the  Mivsouri  and 
Yellowstone  countries.  He  quitted  the  state  of  Missouri  in  the 
ipring  of  1823,  at  tho  head  of  a  large  party  of  men,  with  horses 
carrying  merchandise  and  baggage,  and  proceeded  up  the  Platte 
River,  to  the  sources  of  its  northern  branch,  called  the  Sweet  Water, 
which  had  not  been  previously  explored.  These  sources  were  found 
to  be  situated  in  a  remarkable  valley,  or  cleft,  in  tho  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, in  the  latitude  of  42  degrees  20  minutes ;  and  immediately 
beyond  them  were  discovered  those  of  another  stream,  flowing 
south-westward,  called  by  the  Indians  Sidskadee,  and  by  the 
Americans  Oreen  River,  which  proved  to  be  one  of  the  head- 
waters of  tho  Colorado  of  California.  In  tho  country  about  these 
streams,  which  had  not  then  been  frequented  by  the  British  traders, 
Mr.  Ashley  passed  the  summer,  with  his  men,  employed  in  trap- 
ping, and  in  bartering  goods  for  skins  with  the  natives ;  and,  before 
tho  end  of  the  year,  he  brought  back  to  St.  Louis  a  large  and  valu- 
able stock  of  furs. 

In  1824,  Mr.  Ashley  made  another  expedition  up  the  Platte, 
and  through  the  cleft  in  the  mountains,  which  has  since  been  gen- 
erally called  the  Southern  Pasa ;  and  then,  advancing  farther  west, 
he  reached  a  great  collection  of  salt  water  called  the  Utah  Lake, 
(probably  the  Lake  Timpanogos,  or  Lake  Tegayo,  of  the  old  Spanish 
maps,)  which  lies  imbosomed  among  lofty  mountains,  between  the 
40th  and  the  42d  parallels  of  latitude.  Neaj.*  this  lake,  on  the 
south-east,  he  found  another  and  smaller  one,  to  which  he  gave  hi:^ 
own  name ;  and  there  he  built  a  fort,  or  trading  post,  in  which  he  left 
about  a  hundred  men,  when  he  returned  to  Missouri  in  the  autumn. 
Two  years  afterwards,  a  six-pound  cannon  was  drawn  from  Mis- 
souri to  this  fort,  a  distance  of  more  than  twelv<^j  hundred  miles; 
and,  in  1828,  many  wagons,  heavily  laden,  performed  the  same 
journey. 

During  the  three  years  between  1824  and  1827,  the  men  left  by 
Mr.  Ashley  in  the  country  beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains  collected 
and  sent  to  St.  Louis  furs  to  the  value  of  more  than  one  hundred 
and  eighty  thousand  dollars ;  this  enterprising  man  then  retired  from 
the  trade,  and  sold  all  his  interests  and  establishments  to  the  Rocky 
Mountain  Company,  at  the  head  of  which  were  Messrs.  Smith, 
Jackson,  and  Sublette,  persons  not  less  energetic  and  determined. 


i/i 


fil) 


I; 


>  '■■& 


868 


TRADING     EXPEDITION     Or     PILCHKR. 


[1828. 


r :  I 


I  ., 


These  tradera  carried  on  for  many  years  an  extensive  and  profit- 
able business,  in  the  course  of  which  they  traversed  every  part 
of  the  country  about  the  southern  branch  of  the  Columbia,  and 
nearly  the  whole  of  continental  California.  Unfortunately,  how- 
ever, they  made  no  astronomical  observations,  and,  being  unac- 
quainted with  any  branch  of  physical  science,  very  little  information 
has  been  derived  through  their  means.  Smith,  after  twice  crossing 
the  continent  to  the  Pacific,  was  murdered,  in  the  summer  of  1829, 
by  the  Indians  north-west  of  the  Utah  Lake. 

These  active  proceedings  of  the  Missouri  fur  traders  roused 
the  spirit  of  the  North  American  Company,  which  also  extended  its 
operations  beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains,  though  no  establishments 
were  formed  by  its  agents  in  those  countries ;  and  many  expeditions 
were  made,  in  the  same  direction,  by  independent  parties,  of  whose 
adventures,  narratives,  more  or  less  exact  and  interesting,  have  been 
published.  In  1827,  Mr.  Pilcher  went  from  Council  Blufis,  on  the 
Missouri,  with  forty-five  men,  and  more  than  a  hundred  horses ;  and, 
having  crossed  the  great  dividing  chain  of  mountains  by  the  South- 
ern Pass,  he  spent  the  winter  on  the  Colorado.  In  the  following 
year,  he  proceeded  to  the  Lewis  River,  and  thence,  northwardly, 
along  the  foot  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  on  their  western  side,  to 
the  Flathead  Lake,  near  the  47th  degree  of  latitude,  which  he 
describes  as  a  beautiful  sheet  of  water,  formed  by  the  expansion  of 
the  Clarke  River,  in  a  rich  and  extensive  valley,  surrounded  by  high 
mountains.  There  he  remained  until  the  spring  of  1829,  when 
he  descended  the  Clarke  to  Fort  Colville,  an  establishment  then 
recently  formed  by  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  on  the  northern 
branch  of  the  Columbia,  at  its  falls ;  and  thence  he  returned  to  the 
United  States,  through  the  long  and  circuitous  route  of  the  Upper 
Columbia,  the  Athabasca,  the  Assinaboin,  Red  River,  and  the  Upper 
Missouri.  The  countries  thus  traversed  by  Mr.  Pilcher  have  all 
become  comparatively  well  known  from  the  accounts  of  subsequent 
travellers ;  but  very  little  information  had  been  given  to  the  world 
respecting  them  before  th-s  publication  of  his  concise  narrative.* 
The  account  of  the  rambles  of  J.  O.  Pattie,  a  Missouri  fur  trader, 
through  New  Mexico,  Chihuahua,  Sonora,  and  California,  published 
in  1832,  throws  some  light  on  the  geography  of  parts  of  those 
countries  of  which  little  can  as  yet  be  learned  from  any  other 
source.  During  his  peregrinations,  Pattie  several  times  crossed  the 
great  dividing  chain  of  mountains  between  New  Mexico  on  the 

*  Published  with  President  Jackson's  message  to  Congress,  January  23d,  1829. 


1834.] 


PLANS  or  WTETH  rOR  THE  OHEGON  TRADE. 


359 


J  and  profit- 
1  every  part 
olumbia,  and 
inately,  how- 
being  unac- 
[6  information 
wice  crossing 
imer  of  1829, 

;rader8  roused 
ID  extended  its 
establishments 
iny  expeditions 
rties,  of  whose 
Ling,  have  been 
I  Bluffs,  on  the 
ed  horses ;  and, 
s  by  the  South- 
n  the  following 
ce,  northwardly, 
western  side,  to 
itude,  which  he 
16  expansion  of 
•ounded  by  high 
of  1829,  when 
iblishment  then 
,n  the  northern 
returned  to  the 
te  of  the  Upper 
T,  and  the  Upper 
fpilcher  have  all 
[s  of  subsequent 
■n  to  the  world 
icise  narrative.* 
jouri  fur  trader, 
[fornia,  published 
parts  of  those 
from  any  other 
^mes  crossed  the 
Mexico  on  the 


east,  and  Sonora  and  California  on  the  west,  and  descended  and 
ascended  the  Colorado,  and  its  principal  tributaries,  which  he  de- 
scribes as  being  navigable  by  boats  for  considerable  distances.  He 
also  made  trips  across  Sonora  to  the  Californian  Gulf,  and  across 
California  to  the  'Pacific,  as  well  as  through  the  Mexican  provinces 
on  the  coasts  of  that  ocean,  where  he  suffered  imprisonment  and 
many  other  hardships  from  the  tyranny  of  the  authorities. 

In  1832,  Captain  Bonneville,  of  the  army  of  the  United  States, 
while  on  furlough,  led  a  band  of  more  than  a  hundred  men,  with 
twenty  wagons,  and  many  horses  and  mules,  carrying  merchandise 
from  Missouri  to  the  countries  of  the  Colorado  and  the  Columbia, 
in  which  he  passed  more  than  two  years,  engaged  in  hunting,  trap- 
ping, and  trading.* 

About  the  same  time,  Captain  Wyeth,  of  Massachusetts,  en- 
deavored to  establish  a  regular  system  of  commercial  intercourse 
between  the  states  of  the  Union  and  the  countries  of  the  Columbia, 
to  which  latter  the  general  name  of  OREGON  then  began  to  be 
universally  applied  in  the  United  States.  His  plan,  like  that  devised 
by  Mr.  Astor  in  1810,  was  to  send  manufactured  goods  to  the 
Pacific  countries,  and  from  thence  to  transport  to  the  United  States, 
and  even  to  Chinit,  not  only  furs,  but  also  the  salmon  which  abound 
in  the  rivers  of  North- Western  America.  With  these  objects,  he 
made  two  expeditions  over  land  to  the  Columbia,  in  the  latter  of 
which  he  founded  a  trading  post,  called  Fort  Hall,  on  the  south 
side  of  the  Snake  or  Lewis  branch  of  that  river,  at  the  entrance  of 
the  Portneuf,  about  a  hundred  miles  north  of  the  Utah  Lake ;  and 
he  then  established  another  post,  principally  for  fishing  purposes,  on 
Wappatoo  Island,  near  the  confluence  of  the  Willamet  River  with 
the  Columbia,  a  hundred  miles  above  the  mouth  of  the  latter. 
This  scheme,  however,  failed  entirely.  The  Hudson's  Bay  Com- 
pany's agents  immediately  took  the  alarm,  and  founded  a  counter 
establishment,  called  Fort  Boisi,  at  the  entrance  of  the  BoUi  or 
Rtad's  River  into  the  Lewis,  some  distance  below  Fort  Hall,  where 
they  offered  goods  to  the  Indians  at  prices  much  lower  than  those 
which  the  Americans  could  afford  to  take ;  and  Wyeth,  being  thus 
driven  out  of  the  market,  was  forced  to  compromise  with  his  op- 
ponents, by  selling  his  fort  to  them,  and  engaging  to  desist  from  the 

*  The  narratiye  of  thia  expedition,  written  from  the  notes  of  Captain  Bonneville, 
liy  Washington  Irving,  in  the  vein,  half  seriouB,  half  jocose,  of  Fray  Agapida's 
Chronicle,  contains  some  curioas,  though  generally  overcharged,  pictures  of  life 
Wong  the  hunters,  trappers,  traders,  Indians,  and  grisly  bears,  of  the  Rocky  Moan- 
tuns;  but  it  adds  very  little  to  our  knowledge  of  the  geography  of  those  regions. 


360 


AMCBICAN   TRADERS   IN    CALITOmifU. 


[1884. 


fur  trade.  Meanwhile,  a  brig,  which  he  had  deipetched  from 
Bofton,  with  a  cargo  of  goods,  arrived  at  Wappatoo  Island,  where 
■he,  after  some  further  arrangements  with  the  Hudson's  Bay  Com- 
pany, took  in  a  cargo  of  salted  salmon,  for  the  United  States. 
She  reached  Boston  in  safety ;  but  the  results  of  her  voyage  were 
not  such  as  to  encourage  perseverance  in  the  enterprise,  which  was 
thereupon  abandoned.* 

The  American  traders,  being  excluded  by  these  and  otl  -^-  means 
from  the  Columbia  countries,  confined  themselves  almost  en.  -^ly  to 
the  regions  about  the  head-waters  of  the  Colorado  and  the  Utah 
Lake,  where  they  formed  one  or  two  small  establishments ;  though 
they  sometimes  extended  their  rambles  westward  to  the  Sacramento, 
the  Bay  of  San  Francisco,  and  Monterey,  where  they  were  viewed 
with  dislike  and  mistrust  by  the  Mexican  authorities.  The  number 
of  citizens  of  the  United  States  thus  employed  in  the  country  west 
of  the  Rocky  Mountains  seldom,  if  ever,  exceeded  two  hundred : 
during  the  greater  part  of  the  year,  they  roved  through  the  wildi, 
in  search  of  furs,  which  they  carried,  in  the  summer,  to  certain 
places  of  rendezvous  on  the  Colorado,  or  on  the  Lewis,  and  there 
disposed  of  them  to  the  traders  from  Missouri ;  the  whole  business 
being  conducted  by  barter,  and  without  the  use  of  money,  though 
each  article  bore  a  nominal  value,  expressed  in  dollars  and  cents, 
very  different  from  that  assigned  to  it  in  the  states  of  the  Union.f 

About  the  time  of  Wyeth's  expeditions  also  took  place  the  ear- 
liest emigrations  from  the  United  States  to  the  territories  of  the 
Columbia,  for  the  purpose  of  settlement,  and  without  any  special 
commercial  objects. 

The  first  of  these  colonies  was  founded,  in  1834,  in  the  valley  of 


f  ;i 


tr  1 

If  I 


*  Captain  Wyeth'i  expeditions,  thougfh  unprofitable  to  himself,  have  been  rendered 
advantageous  to  the  world  at  large ;  for  his  short  memoir  on  the  regions  which  he 
visited,  printed  with  the  report  of  the  committee  of  the  House  of  Representativei  on 
the  Oregon  territory,  in  February,  1839,  aifords  more  exact  and  useful  information,  as 
to  their  general  geography,  climate,  soil,  and  agricultural  and  commercial  capabilitiea, 
than  any  other  work  yet  published.  Wyeth's  movements  are  also  related  incidentally 
in  the  account  of  Bonneville's  adventures,  and  in  the  interesting  Narrative  of  a  Jour- 
ney across  the  Rocky  Mountains,  &c.,  by  J.  K.  Townsend,  a  naturalist  of  Philadelphia, 
published  in  1839. 

t  Thus,  among  the  prices  current  at  the  rendezvous  on  Green  River,  in  the 
summer  of  1838,  we  find  whisky  at  three  dollars  per  pint,  gunpowder  at  six  doUan 
per  pint,  tobacco  at  five  dollars  per  pound,  dogs  (for  food)  at  fifteen  dollars  each,  Ac. 
Twenty  dollars  were  frequently  expended  in  rum  and  sugar,  for  a  night's  carouse,  by 
two  or  three  traders,  after  the  conclusion  of  a  bargtun.  Under  such  circunutanceB, 
it  may  bo  supposed  that  the  price  of  beaver  and  muskrat  skins  was  proportionally 
raised ;  and  that  a  package,  purchased  for  a  hundred  dollars  on  Green  River,  may  havt 
been  afterwardo  sold  with  profit  at  St.  Louis  for  twenty. 


I.  I 


[1884. 

ipatched  from 
Island,  where 
on'i  Bay  Coin- 
United  SUtei. 
r  voyage  were 
iae,  which  was 

id  oti  '^''  meant 
most  en.   ""ly  to 

and  the  Utah 
imenti;  though 
he  Sacramento, 
ley  were  viewed 
.  The  number 
he  country  west 
1  two  hundred: 
ough  the  wilds, 
nmer,  to  certain 
Liewis,  and  there 
e  whole  business 
•f  money,  though 
oUars  and  cents, 
of  the  Union.f 

►k  place  the  ear- 
territories  of  the 
|hout  any  special 

L  in  the  valley  of 

If,  have  been  rendered 
Uie  region!  which  he 
[of  BepreienUtivei  on 
I  useful  information,  m 
kmmercial  capabilitiei, 
jlso  related  incidentally 
J  Narrative  of  a  Jour- 
iraliat  of  Philadelphia, 

loreen  River,  in  the 
Ipovrder  at  flix  doUan 
^een  dollar*  each,  &c. 
.•  a  night's  carouae,  by 
Jer  Buch  circumatance*, 
|ns  yn»  proportionally 
Sreen  River,  may  haw 


1836.] 


AMCniCAir   8ETTLEMCNTB    IN   ORBQON. 


Ml 


the  Willamet  River,  in  which  a  tew  retired  lervantii  of  the  Hud- 
son's Bay  Company  had  already  eitabliahed  thomaclvei,  by  per- 
mission of  that  body,  and  were  employed  principally  h  herding 
cattle.  The  Americans,  who  settled  there,  were  mostly  Methodists, 
under  the  direction  of  ministers  of  their  sect ;  and  colonics  of 
Presbyterians  or  Congregationalists  were  afterwards  planted  in  the 
Walla- Walla  and  Spokan  countries.  In  all  these  places,  schools 
for  the  education  of  the  natives  were  opened,  and,  in  1839,  a 
printing  press  was  set  up  at  Walla- Walla,  on  which  were  struck 
oflf  the  first  sheets  ever  printed  on  the  Pacific  side  of  America 
north  of  Mexico.  The  Jesuits  of  St.  Louis  then  engaged  in  the 
labor  of  converting  the  Indians,  in  which  they  appear,  from  their 
own  accounts,  to  have  met  with  extraordinary  success;  but, 
according  to  the  customs  of  that  order,  they  did  not  attempt  to 
form  any  settlements.'* 

The  attention  of  the  government  of  the  United  States  had 
been,  in  the  mean  time,  directed  to  the  north-west  coasts,  es- 
pecially by  tho  recent  refusal  of  the  Russians  to  allow  Amer- 
ican vessels  to  trade  on  the  unoccupied  parts  north  of  the  lat- 
itude  of  54   degrees  40  ^minutes.     This   refusal   was   based   on 

*  The  first  body  of  American  emigrants  went  by  sea,  under  the  direction  of 
Messrs.  Lee  and  Shepherd,  Methodist  ministers,  who  had  already  visited  tlusc 
countries ;  and  several  other  parties  of  persons  of  the  same  sect  have  since  estab< 
liahed  themselves  in  the  Willamet  valley,  and  near  the  falls  of  the  great  river. 

The  pioneer  of  the  other  Protestant  sects  was  Mr.  Samuel  Parker,  whose  journal 
of  his  tour  beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains,  though  highly  interesting  and  instructive, 
would  have  been  much  more  so,  had  he  confined  himself  to  the  retiults  of  his  own 
experience,  and  not  wandered  into  the  regions  of  history,  diplomacy,  and  cosmog- 
ony, in  all  of  which  he  is  evidently  a  stranger.  Upon  the  recommendations  of  Mr. 
Parker,  Messrs.  Spaulding,  Gray,  and  Whitman,  were  sent  out  by  the  Board  of  Mis- 
sions, in  1836 ;  and  they  were  followed,  in  1838,  by  Messrs.  Walker,  Eels,  and  Smith, 
all  of  whom,  with  their  wives,  have  been  since  assiduously  engaged  in  their  benevo- 
lent pursuits  among  the  Indians,  chiefly  those  of  the  middle  regions  of  Oregon.  See 
the  History  of  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners,  published  ai  Boston. 

Some  accounts  of  the  state  of  these  settlements  in  1837  may  be  found  in  the  report 
of  Mr.  W.  Slacum,  who  was  commissioned  by  the  American  government  to  visit  the 
Columbia  countries  in  that  year :  this  paper,  however,  which  was  published  by  order 
of  the  Senate  of  the  United  States  in  1838,  is  so  vague  and  inexact  in  its  details,  that 
it  is,  in  most  cases,  calculated  rather  to  confuse  and  mislead  than  to  direct. 

The  Jesuits  De  Smet,  Mengarini,  Point,  and  others,  have,  since  1840,  made  several 
miasionary  tours  through  the  Columbia  countries,  in  the  course  of  which  they 
baptized  some  thousands  of  Indians;  they  also  erected  a  church  at  a  place  near 
the  Kullerspelm  Lake,  on  Clarke's  River,  where  the  Blessed  Virgin  appeared  in 
person  to  a  little  Indian  boy,  "whose  youth,  piety,  and  sincerity,"  say  the  good 
fathers,  "joined  to  the  nature  of  the  fact  which  he  related,  forbade  us  to  doubt 
the  truth  of  his  statement."— De  Smet'a  Letters,  published  at  Philadelphia,  in  1843, 
p.  192. 

46 


''i„  1 


362 


PEOCCBDINOS    or    THE    RUSSIANS. 


[1838. 


the  fact  that  the  period  of  ten  years,  fixed  by  the  fourth  article  of 
the  convention  of  1824  between  the  two  nations,  during  which  the 
vessels  of  both  parties  might  frequent  the  bays,  creeks,  harbors,  and 
other  interior  waters  on  the  north-west  doast,  had  expired:  and 
the  Russian  government  had  chosen  to  consider  that  article  as  the 
only  limitation  of  its  right  to  exclude  American  vessels  from  all 
parts  of  the  division  of  the  coast  on  which  the  United  States,  by 
the  convention,  engaged  to  form  no  establishments;  disregarding 
entirely  the  first  article  of  the  same  agreement,  by  which  all  unoc- 
cupied places  on  the  north-west  coast  were  declared  free  and  open 
to  the  citizens  or  subjects  of  both  nations.  The  government  of  the 
United  States  immediately  protested  against  this  exclusion;  and 
their  plenipotentiaries  at  St.  Petersburg  have  been  instructed  to 
demand  its  revocation.''*'    To  the  reasons  offered  in  support  of 


*  See  Preaident  Van  Buren's  meatage  to  Congress  of  Deceml>cr  3d,  1838,  and  the 
accompanying  documents.  The  lettf?  of  McRara.  Wilkina  and  Dallas,  Bucceaaively 
plenipotentiaries  of  the  United  States  at  St.  Petersburg,  relating  the  particulars  of 
their  negotiations  with  the  Russian  minister,  will  be  found  very  interesting,  from  the 
luminous  views  of  national  rigiits  presented  in  them.  The  instructions  of  Mr.  For- 
syth, the  American  secretary  of  state,  to  Mr.  Dallas,  dated  November  3d,  1837,  are 
also  especially  wortliy  of  attention.  After  repeating  the  cardinal  rule  as  to  the  con- 
struction of  instruments,  —  that  they  should  be  so  construed,  \f  possible,  as  that  every 
part  may  startd,  —  he  proceeds  tc  show  that  the  fourth  article  of  the  convention  of 
April,  1824,  was  to  be  understood  as  giving  "permission  to  enter  interior  bnya,  &c., 
at  the  mouth  of  which  there  might  be  establishments,  or  the  shores  of  which  might 
be  in  part,  but  not  wholly,  occupied  by  such  establishments ;  thus  providing  for  a 
case  which  would  otherwise  admit  of  doubt,  as  it  would  be  questionable  whether  the 
bays,  Slc,  described  in  it,  belonged  to  the^r«(  or  the  second  article.  In  no  aense," 
continues  Mr.  Forsyth,  "  can  it  be  understood  as  implying  an  acknowledgment,  on 
the  part  of  the  United  States,  of  the  right  of  Russia  to  the  possession  of  the  coaat 
above  the  latitude  of  54  degrees  40  minutes  north ;  but  it  should  be  taken  in  con- 
nection with  the  other  articles,  which  have,  in  fact,  no  reference  whatever  to  the 
question  of  the  right  of  possession  of  ttie  unoccupied  ports  of  the  coast.  In  a  spirit 
of  compromise,  and  to  prevent  future  collisions  or  difficulties,  it  was  agreed  that 
no  new  establishments  should  be  formed  by  tlie  respective  parties  north  or  south  of 
a  certain  parallel  of  latitude,  after  the  conclusion  of  the  agreement ;  but  the  question 
of  the  right  of  possession  beyond  the  existing  establishments,  as  it  subsisted  previous 
to,  or  at  the  time  of,  the  conclusion  of  the  convention,  was  left  untouched.  The 
United  States,  in  agreeing  not  to  form  new  establishments  north  of  the  latitude  of 
54  degrees  and  40  minutes,  made  no  acknowledgment  of  the  right  of  Russia  to  the 
possession  of  the  territory  above  that  line.  If  such  admission  had  been  made,  Russia, 
by  the  same  construction  of  the  article  referred  to,  must  have  acknowledged  the 
right  of  the  United  States  to  the  territory  south  of  the  line.  But  that  Russia  did  not 
so  understand  the  article,  is  conclusively  proved  by  her  having  entered  into  a  similar 
agreement  in  a  subsequent  treaty  (1625)  witii  Great  Britain,  and  having,  in  fact, 
acknowledged  in  that  instrument  the  right  of  possession  of  the  same  territory  by 
Great  Britain.  The  United  States  can  only  be  considered  as  acknowledging  the 
right  of  Russia  to  acquire,  by  actual  occupation,  a  just  claim  to  unoccupied  lands 
above  the  latitude  of  54  degrees  4C  minutes  north ;  and  even  this  is  a  mere  matter 


1838.] 


PROCEEDINGS    Ol*    TtlE    RUSSIANS. 


363 


rth  article  of 
ing  which  the 
,  harbors,  and 
expired:  and 
article  as  the 
issels  from  all 
ted  States,  by 
;  disregarding 
hich  all  unoc- 
free  and  open 
ernment  of  the 
ixclusion;  and 
i  instructed  to 
in  support  of 

r  3d,  1838,  and  the 
Dallas,  Buccessively 
I  the  particulars  of 
titeresting,  from  the 
uctions  of  Mr.  For- 
smber  3d,  1837,  are 
1  rule  as  to  the  con- 
jssUile,  as  thai  every 
'  the  convention  of 
r  interior  bays,  &c., 
res  of  which  might 
hus  providing  for  a 
tionable  whether  the 
tide.    In  no  sense," 
_jknowledgment,  on 
fsession  of  the  coast 
[Id  be  taken  in  con- 
_ice  whatever  to  the 
lie  coast.    In  a  spirit 
it  was  agreed  that 
|es  north  or  south  of 
it;  but  the  question 
it  subsisted  previous 
■ft  untouched.    The 
•th  of  the  latitude  of 
lht  of  Russia  to  the 
been  made,  Russia, 
acknowledged  the 
that  Russia  did  not 
fntered  into  a  similar 
and  having,  in  fact, 
Lo  same  territory  by 
acknowledging  the 
to  unoccupied  lands 
lis  is  a  mere  matter 


this  dotnand,  the  Russian  minister  of  foreign  afTairs,  Count  Nessel- 
rode,  did  not  attempt  to  oiTer  any  reply,  contenting  himself  simply 
with  declaring  that  his  sovereign  was  not  inclined  to  renew  the 
fourth  article,  as  it  aflbrded  the  Americans  the  opportunity  of  fur- 
nishing the  natives  on  the  coasts  with  spirituous  liquors  and  fire-arms ; 
though  no  case  was  adduced  in  support  of  that  assertion.  Thus 
the  matter  rests ;  the  American  traders  being  excluded  (rom  visiting 
any  of  the  coasts  of  the  Pacific  north  of  the  parallel  of  54  degrees 
40  minutes,  on  the  ground  that  those  coasts  are  acknowledged  by 
the  United  States  to  belong  to  Russia,  whilst  the  latter  power,  by 
its  treaty  with  Great  ]3ritain  in  1825,  directly  denies  any  rights, 
on  the  part  of  the  United  States,  to  the  coasts  south  of  that  parallel. 
The  Russian  government  also  refused  the  same  privilege  to  British 
vessels  after  1835,  and  moreover  opposed  by  force  the  exercise  of 
another  privilege  claimed  by  the  British  under  the  treaty  of  1825, 
namely,  that  of  navigating  the  rivers  flowing  from  the  interior  of 
the  continent  to  the  Pacific  across  the  line  of  boundary  therein 
established.  In  1834,  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  fitted  out  an 
expedition  for  the  purpose  of  establishing  a  trading  post  on  the  large 
river  Stikine,  which  enters  the  channel  named  by  Vancouver  Prince 
Frederick's  Sound,  between  the  main  land  and  one  of  the  islands 
of  the  north-west  archipelago  claimed  by  Russia,  in  the  latitude  of 
56  degrees  50  minutes.  Baron  Wrangel,  the  Russian  governor- 
general,  having,  however,  been  informed  of  the  project,  erected  a 
block-house  and  stationed  a  sloop  of  war  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Stikine;  and,  on  the  appearance  of  the  vessel  bringing  the  men 
and  materials  for  the  contemplated  establishment,  the  British  were 
warned  not  to  attempt  to  pass  into  the  river,  and  were  forced  to 
return  to  the  south.  All  appeals  to  the  treaty  were  ineffectual,  and 
the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  was  obliged  to  desist  from  the  prose- 
cution of  the  plan,  after  having,  as  asserted  on  its  part,  spent  more 
tlian  twenty  thousand  pounds  in  fitting  out  the  expedition. 


of  inference,  as  the  convention  of  1824  contains  nothing  more  than  a  negation  of  the 
right  of  the  United  States  to  occupy  new  points  within  that  limit.  Admitting  that 
'.his  inference  was  in  contemplation  of  the  parties  to  the  convention,  it  cannot  follow 
that  the  United  States  ever  intended  to  abandon  the  just  right,  acknowledged  by  the 
first  article  to  belong  to  them,  und-^r  the  law  of  nations ;  that  is,  to  frequent  any  part  of 
the  unoccupied  coast  of  North  America,  for  the  purpose  of  fishing  or  trading  with  the 
natives.  All  that  the  convention  admits  is,  an  inference  of  the  right  of  Russia  to 
acquire  possession  by  settlement  north  of  54  degrees  and  40  minutes  north ;  and, 
until  that  possession  is  taken,  the  first  article  of  the  convention  acknowledges  the 
riglit  of  the  United  States  to  fish  and  trade,  as  prior  to  its  negotiation." 


:! 


i    :i 


fj 


'•''ii  ii 


[■j'l 


l-i 


fS^ 


^.^1; 


n 


H^ 


I. 


i  .;■■ 


I- 

'  ij 

|(  '■'  -I, 
lis'*  ' 


1    I 


,  i 


864  AOREEIfENT   BETWEEN   THE   BRITISH    AND   RUSSIANS.     [1840. 

The  British  government  immediately  demanded  satisfaction,  from 
that  of  Russia,  for  this  infraction  of  the  treaty ;  and,  after  some 
time  spent  in  negotiation  between  the  two  powers,  and  between 
the  two  companies,  it  was  agreed  that  the  part  of  the  continental 
coast  extending  from  the  parallel  of  54  degrees  40  minutes,  north- 
ward, to  Cape  Spenser,  near  the  58th  degree,  which  was  assigned 
to  Russia  by  the  treaty  of  1825,  should  be  leased,  by  the  Russian 
American  Company,  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  for  ten  years 
from  the  1st  of  June,  1840,  at  an  annual  rent,  to  be  paid  in  furs. 
The  difficulty  was  thus  ended,  to  the  advantage  of  all  parties ;  the 
British  gaining  access  to  a  long  line  of  coast,  without  which  the 
adjoining  territories  of  the  interior  would  have  been  useless,  while 
the  Russians  derive  a  much  greater  amount  from  the  rent  than  they 
could  have  otherwise  drawn  from  the  coast. 

■  The  charter  of  the  Russian  American  Company  was  renewed,  in 
1839,  for  twenty  years,  without  any  modifications  worthy  of  note. 
The  company  was  then  in  a  prosperous  condition ;  its  operations 
were  daily  extending,  and  the  value  of  its  stock  was  constantly 
increasing. 

The  license,  granted  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  in  1821,  to 
trade,  in  exclusion  of  all  other  British  subjects,  in  the  countries 
owned  or  claimed  by  Great  Britain,  north  and  west  of  Canada  and 
the  United  States,  expired  in  1840 ;  but  another  license,  containing 
some  new  and  important  provisions,  had  been  accorded  by  the 
government,  on  the  30th  of  May,  1838.*  Thus  the  company  was 
bound,  under  heavy  penalties,  to  enforce  the  due  execution  of  crim- 
inal processes,  by  the  officers  and  other  persons  legally  empowered, 
in  all  its  territories,  and  to  make  and  submit  to  the  government 
such  rules  and  regulations,  for  the  trade  with  the  Indians,  as  should 
be  effectual  to  promote  their  moral  and  religious  improvement,  and 
especially  to  prevent  the  sale  and  distribution  of  spirituous  liquors 
among  them.  It  is  moreover  declared,  in  the  grant,  that  nothing 
therein  contained  should  authorize  the  company  to  claim  the  right 
of  trade  in  any  part  of  America,  to  the  prejudice  or  exclusion  of 
the  people  of  "  any  foreign  states  "  who  may  be  entitled  to  trade 
there,  in  virtue  of  conventions  between  such  states  and  Great 
Britain  ;  and  the  government  reserves  to  itself  the  right  to  establish 
any  colony  or  province  within  the  territories  included  in  the  grant, 
or  to  annex  any  portion  of  those  territories  to  any  existing  colony 
or  province,  and  to  apply  to  such  colony  any  form  of  civil  govern- 

*  See  both  the  licenses  in  the  Proofs  and  Illustrations,  letter  I. 


]822.] 


CALIFORNIA   SUBJECT   TO   MEXICO. 


865 


ment,  independent  c .'  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  which  might  be 
deemed  proper.  Whc^i^r  this  last  provision  was  introduced  with 
some  special  and  immediate  object,  or  with  a  view  to  future  contin- 
gencies, no  means  have  as  yet  been  afforded  for  determining.  The 
British  government,  however,  insisted  strongly  on  retaining  the 
above-mentioned  privileges ;  and  it  is  most  probable  that  the 
Columbia  countries  were  in  view  at  the  time,  as  the  remainder 
of  the  territory  included  in  the  rant,  and  not  possessed  by  the 
company  in  virtue  of  the  charter  of  1G69,  is  of  little  value  in 
any  way. 

In  California,  few  events  worthy  of  note  occurred  during  the 
whole  period  of  fifty  years,  from  the  first  establishment  of  Spanish 
colonies  and  garrisons  on  the  west  coasts  of  that  country,  to  the 
termination  of  the  revolutionary  struggle  between  Spain  and  Mex- 
ico. Before  the  commencement  of  the  disturbances,  the  missions 
were,  to  a  certain  extent,  fostered  by  the  Spanish  government,  and 
supplies  of  money  and  goods  were  sent  to  them,  with  regularity, 
from  Acapulco  and  San  Bias ;  but,  after  the  revolution  broke  out, 
these  remittances  were  reduced,  the  missionaries  lost  their  influence 
over  the  natives,  and  the  establishments  fell  into  decay.  Upon  the 
overthrow  of  the  Spanish  power,  in  182S,  California  was  divided 
politically  into  two  territories,  of  which  the  peninsula  formed  one, 
called  Lower  California ;  the  other,  or  Upper  California,  embracing 
the  whole  of  the  continental  portion.  By  the  constitution  of  1824, 
each  of  these  territories  became  entitled  to  send  one  member  to  the 
National  Congress ;  and,  by  subsequent  decrees,  all  the  adult  Indians, 
who  could  be  considered  as  civilized  or  capable  of  reasoning,  (gente 
it  razon,)  were  freed  from  submission  to  their  former  pastors,  had 
lands  assigned  to  them,  and  were  declared  citizens  of  the  republic. 
These  seeming  boons  were,  however,  accompanied  by  the  with- 
drawal of  nearly  all  the  allowances  previously  made  for  the  estab- 
lishments, and  by  the  imposition  of  taxes  and  duties  on  all  imports, 
including  those  from  Mexico.  The  authority  of  the  missionaries 
thus  dwindled  away,  and  those  who  had  been  long  in  the  country 
either  returned  to  Mexico  or  Spain,  or  escaped  to  other  lands :  the 
cultivation  of  the  mission  farms  was  abandoned,  and  the  Indians, 
freed  from  restraint,  i  elapsed  into  barbarism,  or  sunk  into  the  lowest 
state  of  indolence  and  vice. 

Whilst  the  number  of  civilized  Indians  in  California  was  by  these 
measures  diminished,  the  white  population  was  at  the  same  time 
somewhat  increased.     Immediately  after,  and  indeed  before,  the 


;:  « 


ft.  i. 


■^i.vTSffii'^' 


. 


I  [ 


366 


OALITORNIA    SUBJECT    TO   MEXICO. 


[1828. 


overthrow  of  the  Spanish  authority  in  that  country,  its  ports  became 
the  resort  of  foreigners,  especially  of  the  whalers  and  traders  of 
the  United  States,  who  offered  coarse  manufactured  articles  and 
groceries  in  exchange  for  provisions,  and  for  the  hides  and  tallow 
of  the  wild  cattle  abounding  in  the  country.  This  trade  was  at 
first  carried  on  in  the  same  irregular  manner  as  the  fur  trade  with 
the  Indians  on  the  coasts  farther  north ;  as  it  increased,  however, 
it  became  more  systematized,  and  mercantile  houses  were  estab- 
lished in  the  principal  ports.  The  majority  of  the  merchants  were 
foreigners,  English,  French,  or  Americans :  in  their  train  came  shop 
and  tavern-keepers,  and  artisans,  from  various  countries;  and  to 
these  were  added  deserting  seamen  and  stragglers  from  the  Missouri 
and  the  Columbia. 

This  state  of  things  was  by  no  means  satisfactory  to  the  Mexican 
government ;  and  orders  were  given  to  the  commandant-general  of 
Upper  California  to  enforce  the  laws  prohibitmg  foreigners  from 
entering  or  residing  in  the  Mexican  territories  without  special  per- 
mission from  the  authorities.  Agreeably  to  these  orders,  a  number 
of  American  citizens  were,  in  1828,  seized  at  San  Diego,  and  kept 
in  confinement  until  1830,  when  an  insurrection  broke  out,  headed 
by  a  General  Solis,  which  they  were  instrumental  in  subduing;  and, 
in  consideration  of  their  services,  they  were  allowed  to  quit  the 
country.  The  trading  expeditions  of  Ashley  and  Smith,  of  which 
accounts  have  been  already  presented,  at  the  same  time  gave  great 
uneasiness  to  the  Mexican  government,  and  were  made  the  subjects 
of  formal  complaints  to  that  of  the  United  States. 

These  circumstances,  with  others  of  the  same  nature  then  occur- 
ring in  Texas,  served  to  delay  the  conclusion  of  treaties  of  limits, 
and  of  amity,  commerce,  and  navigation,  between  the  United  States 
and  Mexico ;  which  were,  however,  at  length  signed  and  ratified, 
so  as  to  become  effective  in  1832.  By  the  treaty  of  limits,  the  line 
of  boundary  from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  to  the  Pacific,  which  was 
settled  between  the  United  States  and  Spain  in  1819,  was  adopted 
as  separating  the  territories  of  the  United  States  on  the  north  from 
those  of  Mexico  on  the  south ;  and  the  latter  power  accordingly 
claims  as  its  own  the  whole  territory  west  of  the  great  dividing 
chain  of  mountains,  as  far  north  as  the  42d  parallel  of  latitude. 

The  Mexican  government  likewise  endeavored  to  prevent  the 
evils  anticipated  from  the  presence  of  so  many  foreigners  in  Cali- 
fc  nia,  by  founding  new  colonies  of  its  own  citizens  in  that  country. 
Criminals  were  to  be  transported  thither ;  but  although  many  were 


1837.] 


RBYOLUTION    IN   CALIFORNIA. 


Mt 


thus  sentenced,  few,  if  any,  ever  reached  the  place  of  their  desti- 
nation. A  number  of  persons,  of  various  trades  and  professions, 
were  also  sent  out  from  Mexico  in  1834,  to  be  located  on  the  lands 
of  the  missions  in  California;  but,  ere  they  reached  those  places, 
the  administration  by  which  the  scheme  was  devised,  had  been 
overthrown,  and  the  new  authorities,  entertaining  different  views, 
ordered  the  seitkrs  to  be  driven  back  to  their  native  land. 

These  new  authorities  —  that  is  to  say.  General  Santa  Anna  and  . 
his  partisans  —  determined  to  remodel  the  constitution,  under  which 
Mexico  had  been  governed,  as  a  federal  republic,  since  1824.  What 
other  form  was  to  have  been  introduced  in  its  stead,  is  not  known ; 
for,  in  the  spring  of  1836,  at  the  moment  when  the  change  was 
about  to  be  made,  Santa  Anna  was  defeated  and  taken  prisoner  by 
the  Texans  at  San  Jacinto.  Those  who  succeeded  to  the  helm 
being,  however,  no  less  averse  to  the  federal  system,  it  was  abolished 
in  the  latter  part  of  the  same  year,  and  a  constitution  was  adopted, 
by  which  the  powers  of  government  were  placed  almost  entirely  in 
the  hands  of  the  general  congress  and  executive,  all  state  rights 
being  destroyed.  This  central  system  was  opposed  in  many  parts 
of  the  republic,  and  nowhere  more  strenuously  than  in  California, 
where  the  people  rose  in  a  body,  expelled  the  Mexican  ofll^cers,  and 
declared  that  their  country  should  remain  independent  until  the 
federal  constitution  were  restored.  The  general  government,  on 
receiving  the  news  of  these  proceedings,  issued  strong  proclamations 
against  the  insurgents,  and  ordered  an  expedition  to  be  prepared 
for  the  purpose  of  reestablishing  its  authority  in  the  revolted 
territory;  but  General  Urrea.  to  whom  the  execution  of  this 
order  was  committed,  soon  after  declared  in  favor  of  the  fed- 
eralists, and  the  Californians  were  allowed  to  govern  themselves  as 
they  chose  for  some  months,  at  the  end  of  which,  in  July,  1837, 
their  patriotic  enthusiasm  subsided,  and  they  voluntarily  swore  alle- 
giance to  the  new  constitution. 

Since  that  time,  the  quiet  course  of  things  in  California  has,  so 
far  as  known,  been  disturbed  by  only  one  occurrence  worthy  of 
being  mentioned ;  namely,  the  capture  and  temporary  occupation  of 
Monterey  by  the  naval  forces  of  the  United  States,  under  Commo- 
dore T.  A.  C.  Jones,  of  which  the  following  brief  account  will  suffice. 
This  officer,  while  cruising  on  the  South  American  coast  of  the  Pa- 
cific, received  information  which  led  him  to  believe  that  Mexico  had, 
agreeably  to  a  menace  shortly  before  uttered  by  her  government, 
declared  war  against  the  United  States;  and,  being  determined 


1 


'Sill 


368 


OAPTURE   or   MONTEREY  BT  THE   AMERICANS. 


[1842. 


ir' 


to  strike  a  blow  at  the  supposed  enemy,  he  sailed,  with  his  frigate, 
the  United  States,  and  the  sloop  of  war  Cyane,  to  Monterey,  where 
he  arrived  on  the  19th  of  October,  1842.  Having  disposed  his 
vessels  in  front  of  the  little  town,  he  sent  an  officer  ashore,  to 
demand  the  surrender  "  of  the  castle,  posts,  and  military  places, 
with  all  troops,  arms,  and  munitions  of  war  of  every  class,"  in 
default  of  which,  the  sacrifice  of  human  life  and  the  horrors  of 
war  would  be  the  immediate  consequence.  The  commandant 
of  the  place,  astounded  by  such  a  demand,  made  in  a  time  of 
profound  peace,  summoned  his  officers  to  a  council,  in  which  it 
was  decided  that  no  defence  could  be  made:  he  therefore  sub- 
mitted without  delay,  and  the  flag  of  the  United  States  replaced  that 
of  Mexico  over  all  the  public  edifices ;  the  fortifications  were  garri- 
soned by  American  soldiers,  and  the  commodore  issued  a  proclama- 
tion to  the  Californians,  inviting  them  to  submit  to  the  government 
of  the  federal  republic,  which  would  protect  and  insure  to  them  the 
undisturbed  exercise  of  their  religion,  and  all  other  privileges  of 
freemen.  Scarcely,  however,  was  this  proclamation  sent  forth,  ere 
the  commodore  received  advices  which  convinced  him  that  he  had 
been  in  error,  and  that  the  peace  between  his  country  and  Mexico 
remained  unbroken ;  he  had,  therefore,  only  to  restore  the  place  to 
its  former  possessors,  and  to  retire  with  all  his  forces  to  his  ships, 
which  was  done  on  the  21st  of  the  month,  twenty-four  hours  after 
the  surrender.  Thus  ended  an  affair,  the  effects  of  which  have  been 
unfortunately  to  increase  the  irritation  already  existing  in  Mexico 
against  the  United  States,  and  to  render  less  easy  the  adjustment  of 
the  differences  between  the  two  nations.  The  armed  force  in  Cali- 
fornia has  since  been  considerably  augmented ;  but  it  is  evident  that 
all  the  efforts  of  Mexico  would  be  unavailing  to  retain  those  distant 
possessions,  in  the  event  of  a  war  with  a  powerful  maritime  state. 

In  the  Sandwich  Islands,  a  complete  change  has  taken  place 
since  the  death  of  Tamahamaha.  His  son  and  successor,  Riho 
Riho,  died,  in  1824,  in  London,  whither  he  had  gone,  with  his 
queen,  to  visit  his  brother  sovereign  of  Great  Britain ;  and  he  was 
himself  succeeded  by  Kauikeaouli,  another  reputed  son  of  the  great 
Tamahamaha,  who  now  fills  the  throne,  under  the  name  of  Kame- 
hamaha  III.  These  changes  were  all  advantageous  to  the  mission- 
aries from  the  United  States,  many  of  whom  were  domiciliated  in 
the  islands ;  particularly  after  the  conversion  of  Krymakoo,  or  Billy 
Pitt,  the  old  prime  minister,  and  of  Kaahumanu,  the  widow  of  the 
great  Tamahamaha,  who,  after  passing  half  a  century  in  the  con- 


1884.] 


insaiONABIKa  IW  THK   SAVDWIQK   |Sl44tf9«> 


3Q9 


stant  practice  of  the  most  beatUy  oeaiuality,  embraced  Cbriftianity 
in  her  old  age,  and  became  a  zealouy  and  efficient  protector  of  ita 
professoiti.*  Boki,  the  brother  of  Krymakoo,  a  powerful  chief, 
who  had  accompanied  Riho  Riho  to  England,  and,  on  hip  return, 
endeavored  to  obtain  the  aovereignty  of  the  islands,  proyed  very 
refractory  and  annoying  to  the  missionaries,  alternately  cooperating 
with  them,  or  setting  them  fit  defiance,  according  tq  the  dic- 
tates of  his  ambition.f 

After  the  death  of  Riho  Riho,  Kaahumanu,  first,  and  then  Kinau 
one  of  the  widows  of  the  late  king,  conducted  the  government 
as  regents,  until  1S34,  when  the  young  sovereign  threw  off  all 
restraints,  and,  taking  the  reins  into  his  own  hands,  determined  to 
enjoy  life  like  other  legitimate  princes.  Feasting  and  dancing  in 
the  old  style  were  again  seen  in  the  palace ;  drinking  shops  were 
opened,  distilleries  were  set  up,  and  other  ancient  immoralities 
reappeared,  under  the  immediate  patronage  of  the  court.  But  the 
ehurch  had  become  a  part  of  the  state.  The  chiefs  were  all  nomi- 
nally Christians ;  the  missionaries  exerted  themselves  to  stem  the 
torrent,  and  they  succeeded.  The  king  Wis  obliged  to  yield ;  the 
shops  and  distilleries  were  successively  closed,  and  order  and 
decency  resumed  their  reign. 

The  ill  success  of  this  attempt,  on  the  part  of  the  king,  to  free 
himself  from  the  trammels  imposed  by  the  missionaries,  of  course 
increased  their  power ;  which  they  exerted  with  energy,  and  gen- 

*  Krymakoo  died  in  1825,  and  Kaahumanu  in  1832 ;  the  exemplary  manner  in 
which  they  took  leave  of  the  pomps  and  vanities  of  life  is  minutely  described  in  the 
History  of  the  American  Board  of  Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions,  pp.  175 
and  230. 

t  Boki,  having  been  disappointed  in  his  hopes  of  attaining  the  w>verei{rnty  of  his 
country,  sailed,  in  1829,  with  a  number  of  followers,  in  two  vessels,  in  search  of 
some  new  islands,  covered  with  sandal-wood,  which  were  said  to  have  been  dis> 
covered  in  the  south-west.  One  of  the  vessels  returned  to  Woahoo ;  of  the  other,  in 
vhich  Boki  commanded  in  person,  nothing  has  been  since  heard,  fixcept  some 
rumors  that  she  was  blown  up. 

The  Lrf>ndon  Quarterly  Review  for  March,  1827,  contains  a  letter  purporting  to 
have  been  written  by  Boki,  at  Woahoo,  to  a  friend  in  London,  expressing  consider- 
able dissatisfaction  with  the  conduct  of  the  American  missionaries,  which  has  given 
those  worthy  persons  much  uneasiness,  and  has  caused  them  to  expend  much  more 
of  virtuous  indignation  and  serious  argument,  in  refuting  the  charges,  than  it 
deserved.  The  letter  is  an  exquisite  morceau  of  orthography  and  style,  and  should 
find  a  place  in  the  Comic  Almanac.  See  the  History  of  Uie  American  Board  of 
Commissioners  for  Foreign  Missions,  p.  176,  and  Mr.  C.  S.  Stewart's  narrative 
of  his  residence  in  the  Sandwich  Isbnds,  p.  342.  The  latter  work  will  amply 
repay  the  reader  for  the  time  which  he  may  devote  to  it;  not  only  from  the  informa- 
tion afforded  respecting  the  islands,  but  also  as  exhibiting,  in  the  most  interesting 
manner,  the  workings  of  a  puse  and  enthusiastic  mind. 
47 


m. 


m 


OATHOLIO   PBIB8TS   IN  THE   SANDWICH    ISLANDS.        [1838. 


erelly  with  discretion,  for  the  benefit  of  the  community.  They 
employed  every  means  to  keep  the  chiefs  in  what  they  considered 
the  right  path,  and  to  conciliate  the  young.  Schools  were  opened 
wherever  scholars  could  be  found ;  and  the  Bible,  in  the  language 
of  the  islands,  was  placed  in  the  hands  of  all  who  could  read  it. 
Laws  restraining  drunkenness  and  other  vices  were  proposed  to  the 
government  and  adopted:  in  1838,  the  importation  of  spirituous 
liquors  was  prohibited ;  and,  in  1840,  a  written  constitution,  also 
the  work  of  the  missionaries,  exhibiting  much  wisdom  and  knowl- 
edge of  the  world  on  their  part,  was  subscribed  by  the  king  and 
his  principal  nobles. 

In  these  endeavoro  to  raise  a  barbarous  people  to  civilization, 
and  to  place  their  country  among  Christian  states,  the  American 
missionaries  were  constantly  opposed  and  thwarted  by  their  own 
fellow-citizens  and  the  subjects  of  other  nations,  who  resorted  to 
the  islands  for  the  purposes  of  trade,  or  of  refreshment,  after  long 
and  dangerous  voyages.  The  precepts  of  a  religion  enjoining  self- 
denial  in  all  things  could  not  find  favor  among  such  persons ;  to 
whom  its  apostles  became  objects  of  hatred,  as  the  destroyers  of 
all  their  pleasures.  Bickerings  took  place  between  the  two  par- 
ties :  the  missionaries  were  assaulted  with  sticks,  and  stones,  and 
knives,  all  which  they  fearlessly  confronted,  rather  than  yield  a 
foot  of  the  ground  already  occupied ;  and  the  young  king  was 
daily  subjected  to  complaints  fron.'  sea  captains  and  consuls  on 
the  one  side,  and  to  remonstrances  from  his  spiritual  advisers  on 
the  other.  That  the  latter  carried  their  restrictions  too  far,  con- 
sidering the  circumstances,  there  is  reason  to  believe ;  for,  though 
no  defence  can  be  made  for  the  practices  which  they  reprobated, 
yet  many  of  them  can  never  be  prevented  by  means  compatible 
with  the  enjoyment  of  civil  liberty ;  and  it  may  be  neither  prudent 
nor  just  to  set  a  mark  on  all  who  are  guilty  of  them. 

The  American  missionaries  had  to  encounter  greater  difficulties 
from  a  different  source.  Other  laborers  entered  the  vineyard.  In 
1827,  two  Roman  Catholic  priests,  Messrs.  Short,  an  Irishman,  and 
Bachelot,  a  Frenchman,  arrived  in  the  islands,  and  engaged  in  the 
conversion  of  the  natives  to  their  form  of  Christianity.  They 
were,  of  course,  regarded  with  unfriendly  eyes  by  the  Protestants, 
and  particularly  by  the  pious  regent  Kaahumanu,  to  whose  faction 
they  were  opposed;  and,  through  her  influence,  they  were  at 
length,  in  1831,  expelled  from  the  islands,  on  the  grounds  that 
they  were  idolaters,  and  worshipped  the  bones  of  dead  men.    A 


1889.] 


RKINBTATSIIKNT  OF   CATHOLIC   PHIESTS. 


371 


chapel  and  tchool  were,  nevertheless,  soon  after  opened  at  Hono- 
lulu, by  another  Catholic  priest,  named  Walsh;  and,  in  1838,  Kaa- 
humanu  being  dead,  Messrs.  Bachelot  and  Short  ventured  to  return 
to  the  islands,  from  California,  where  they  had  passed  the  greater 
part  of  the  time,  since  their  expulsion.  They  were  again  ordered 
by  the  government  to  take  their  departure ;  and,  on  their  refusal, 
were  forcibly  put  on  board  the  vessel  which  brought  them,  and 
thus  sent  away,  notwithstanding  the  protests  made  by  the  consuls 
of  the  United  States  and  Great  Britain,  on  the  part  of  the  owners 
of  the  vessel,  and  by  the  commanders  of  a  British  and  a  French 
ship  of  war,  which  arrived  at  the  time  in  the  islands.  That  the 
Protestant  missionaries  were  the  instigators  of  this  proceeding,  has 
been  asserted,  though  it  is  denied  by  their  friends;  that  they 
might,  if  they  chose,  have  prevented  it,  there  can,  however, 
be  as  little  doubt,  as  that  they  snould  have  done  so,  if  it  were  in 
their  power. 

For  this  act,  which,  besides  being  entirely  at  variance  with  the 
constant  principle  of  Protestantism,  and  the  spirit  of  toleration  now 
so  happily  pervading  the  world,  indicated  extreme  ignorance,  and 
culpable  disregard  of  consequences,  on  the  part  of  those  who 
directed  it,  a  severe  retribution  was  soon  after  exacted.  On  the 
9th  of  July,  1839,  the  French  frigate  Artemise  arrived  at  Hono- 
lulu, and  her  captain,  Laplace,  immediately  demanded  reparation 
for  the  insult  offered  to  his  country  and  its  national  religion ;  with 
which  object,  he  required  that  the  Roman  Catholic  worship 
should  be  declared  free  throughout  the  islands,  and  its  professors 
should  enjoy  all  the  privileges  heretofore  granted  to  Protestants ; 
that  the  government  should  give  a  piece  of  ground  for  the 
erection  of  a  Catholic  church;  that  all  Catholics  imprisoned 
on  account  of  their  religion  should  be  liberated ;  and,  finally, 
that,  as  a  security  for  the  performance  of  these  engagements, 
twenty  thousand  dollars  should  be  placed,  and  should  remain,  in 
his  hands.  With  these  demands  the  king  immediately  complied ; 
and,  had  the  French  commander  contented  himself  with  what  he 
had  thus  effected,  his  conduct  would  have  been  blameless  in  the  eyes 
of  all  unprejudiced  men.  But  he  also  required  and  obtained,  that 
the  brandy  and  wines  of  his  country,  the  introduction  of  which, 
as  of  all  other  spirituous  liquors,  was  most  properly  prohibited  by 
law,  should  be  admitted  into  the  islands  on  paying  a  duty  of  not 
more  than  five  per  cent,  on  their  value — an  act,  considering  the 
relative  degrees  of  civilization  of  the  two  parties,  far  more  repre- 
hensible than  that  for  which  he  had  just  before  obtained  atonement 


d-  i  '■[ 


( V§ 


878 


kiiiiidtt  of  ttAALtLio  ▲»»  ftioHAiDt. 


II843. 


i:  .  ! 


H>  t. 


Captain  LapkuM  blio  thought  proper  to  declare  in  a  dncular,  that, 
in  caie  he  ihould  attack  Honolulu,  the  American  miisionariei 
would  not  enjoy  the  protection  promised  by  him  to  the  people  of 
civilized  nations;  fortunately,  however,  he  had  no  occasion  to 
carry  this  threat  into  execution,  as  it  might  have  produced 
a  most  serious  breach  of  good  understanding  between  his  govern' 
ment  and  that  of  the  United  States. 

Difficulties  about  the  same  time  arose  between  the  government 
of  the  Sandwich  Islands  and  the  British  consul ;  in  consequence 
of  which,  the  king  determined  to  despatch  an  agent  to  the  United 
States,  Great  Britain,  and  France,  in  order  to  obtain,  if  possible, 
a  distinct  recognition  of  the  independence  of  his  dominions  by 
those  nations,  artd  to  make  some  definite  arrangement  for  the 
prevention  of  difficulties  in  future.    With  these  objects,  Timoteo 
Haalileo,  a  young  native  who  had  been  educated  in  the  school  of 
the  missionaries,   and  had   filled  several  important   offices,  was 
selected  as  the  agent ;  and  he  was  to  be  accompanied  by  Mr.  W. 
Richards,  one  of  the  American  missionaries,  who,  having  distin- 
guished himself,  during  a  long  residence  in  the  islands,  by  his 
zeal  in  behalf  of  the  people  and  their  government,  had,  with  the 
assent  of  his  brethren,  entered  regularly  into  the  king's  service. 
They  arrived  in  Washington  in  the  winter  of  1842,  and,  upon 
their  application.  President  Tyler  addressed  a  message  to  Con- 
gress,* in  which,  after  briefly  recapitulating  the  advantages  derived 
by  the  United  States  from  the  Sandwich  Islands,  as  a  place  of 
trade  and  refreshment  for  vessels  in  the  Pacific,  and  alluding  to  the 
desire  manifested  by  their  government  to  improve  the  moral  and 
social  condition  of  the  people,  he  declared  that  any  attempt  by 
another  power  to  take  possession  of  the  islands,  colonize  them, 
and  subvert  the  native  government,  could  not  but  create  dissatis- 
faction on  the  part  of  the  United  States ;  and,  should  such  attempt 
be  made,  the  American  government  would  be  justified  in  remon- 
strating decidedly   against    it.     An   American  conmnissioner  was 
accordingly  despatched  to  the  Sandwich  Islands,  charged  to  inquire 
and  report  as  to  the  propriety  of  establishing  diplomatic  relations 
with  their  government ;  and  Messrs.  Haalileo  and  Richards,  after 
some  time  spent  in  the  United  States,  proceeded  to  Great  Brit- 
ain and  France,  where  their  presence  proved  ultimately  useful  in 
bringing  about  the  peaceful  solution  of  the  difficulties  which  had 
occasioned  their  mission. 


Menage  of  December  Slit,  1842. 


1848.] 


SANDWICH   ISLANDS  OOCUFICD  BT  TBI  BBITISH. 


fia 


In  the  mean  time,  Lord  Oeorge  Paulet,  a  captain  in  the  British 
navy,  arrived  at  Woahoo,  in  February,  1843,  in  the  ship  Carysfort, 
and  demanded  from  the  king  explanations  with  regard  to  the 
conduct  oi  his  government  towards  the  consul  and  subjects  of  her 
Britannic  majesty.  Not  receiving  a  satisfactory  answer  within  the 
period  prescribed,  this  officer  threatened,  in  the  event  of  longer 
delay,  to  make  an  attack  upon  Honolulu  ;  whereupon  the  king,  find- 
ing himself  unable  to  comply  with  the  demands,  or  to  resist  them» 
surrendered  all  the  islands  under  his  dominion  to  Great  Britain^ 
until  the  matter  could  be  arranged  between  the  government  of  that 
country  and  the  agents  whom  he  had  already  sent  thither.  The 
British  commander  accordingly  took  possession,  appointed  commis- 
sioners to  conduct  the  administration,  and  issued  various  regulations 
for  the  government  of  the  islands,  until  further  orders  could  be 
received  from  England. 

The  news  of  these  events  created  much  excitement  in  the 
United  States ;  and  a  protest  against  the  occupation  of  the  Sand- 
wich Islands  by  Great  Britain  was  immediately  addressed  by  the 
American  government  to  the  court  of  London.  On  the  25th  of 
June,  however,  the  British  minister  at  Washington  declcured 
officially,  that  the  acts  of  Lord  George  Paulet  were  entirely  un- 
authorized by  her  majesty;  conformably  with  which.  King  Kameha- 
maha  was,  on  the  31st  of  July,  reinstated  in  all  his  powers  and  dig- 
nities by  Admiral  Thomas,  the  commander-in-chief  of  the  British 
naval  forces  in  the  Pacific.  Finally,  on  the  28th  of  November,  a 
declaration  was  signed  at  London,  on  the  parts  of  the  queen  of 
England  and  the  king  of  Uie  French,  whereby  their  majesties  "  en- 
gaged reciprocally  to  consider  the  Sandwich  Islands  as  an  inde- 
pendent state,  and  never  to  take  possession,  either  directly,  or  un- 
der the  title  of  protectorate,  or  under  any  other  form,  of  any  part 
of  the  territory  of  which  they  are  composed." 

These  acts  of  the  British  and  the  French,  with  regard  to  the 
Sandwich  Islands,  arose,  doubtless,  rather  from  political  jealousy,  on 
the  parts  of  those  nations,  than  from  the  simple  desire  to  protect 
their  subjects  in  trade  or  religion.  The  French  have  shown  their 
anxiety  to  obtain  a  permanent  footing  on  the  Pacific,  by  their  at- 
tempts to  form  a  colony  in  New  Zealand,  by  their  military  occupa- 
tion of  the  Washington  or  North  Marquesas  Islands  and  their  forci- 
ble seizure  of  Otaheite,  and  by  various  other  circumstances ;  whilst 
the  British  have  evinced  their  determination  to  counteract  those 
efforts  by  othei's  equally  unequivocal.   To  either  of  these  nations  the 


! 


If' 


1m  # 


;|;  • 


874 


BHITIIH   OCOUPT  TRC   rALELANO   ISLAND!. 


[1834. 


Sandwich  Iilandi  would  prove  a  most  valuable  acquisition,  as  it 
would  afford  the  means  of  controlling  the  tradn  and  fishery  of  the 
North  Pacific,  and  of  exercising  a  powerful  influence  over  the 
destinies  of  the  north-west  coasts  of  America  and  Cnhfomia.  Thn 
United  States,  claiming  the  north-west  coasts,  and  conducting; 
nearly  the  whole  of  the  fishery  and  trade  of  the  North  Pacific,  aro 
deeply  interested  in  all  that  may  affect  the  independence  of  these 
island  H ;  and,  having  neither  the  power  nor  the  will  to  establish 
their  own  authority  over  them  at  present,  it  is  the  policy  and  duty 
of  their  government  to  oppose,  at  almost  any  hazard,  the  attempts 
of  other  nations  to  acquire  dominion  or  influence  in  this  important 
archipelago. 

It  will  be  proper  here  also  to  notice,  as  connected  with  the  history 
and  probable  destinies  of  North- West  America,  the  fact  of  the  oc- 
cupation of  the  Falkland  Islands  by  Great  Britain,  in  1833.  After 
the  overthrow  of  the  Spanish  supremacy  in  America,  these  islands 
were  claimed  by  the  government  of  Buenos  Ayres,  as  [<aving 
formed  part  of  the  territory  under  the  direction  of  the  viceroy 
of  La  Plata ;  and  attempts  were  made  by  that  government  to 
exercise  dominion  over  them,  which  produced,  in  1831,  a  collision 
between  its  authorities  and  the  naval  forces  of  the  United  States. 
In  the  month  of  January,  1833,  the  British  took  possession  of  the 
whole  group,  which  they  have  ever  since  occupied  ;  and,  a  repre- 
sentation on  the  subject  having  been  addressed  to  that  government, 
by  the  diplomatic  agent  of  Buenos  Ayres  at  London,  Lord  Pal- 
merston,  the  British  secretary  fur  foreign  affairs,  in  reply,  main- 
tained'**'  the  exclusive  right  of  his  nation  to  the  islands,  on  the 
ground  of  first  discovery  and  occupation — thus  entirely  disre- 
garding the  sixth  article  of  the  Nootka  convention  of  1790, 
according  to  which,  no  settlement  could  be  made,  either  by  Great 
Britain  or  by  Spain,  on  any  part  of  the  coasts  of  South  America 
or  the  islands  adjacent,  "  situated  to  the  south  of  those  parts  of 
the  same  coasts,  and  of  the  islands  adjacent,  which  are  already 
occupied  by  Spain,"  althon.'^h  his  government  luu,  in  1827 
supported  the  subsistence  of  that  convention  v'AU  rc^;<c(  i  lo  the 
north-west  coasts  of  North  America. 

In  1841,  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and  the  coasts  of  Oregon  and 
Cel'fornia,  were  visited  by  the  exploring  ships  of  the  United 
Stf.t  s,  under  the  command  of  Lieutenant  Charles  Wilkes,  who 

*  Letter  i'ron  Lord  Pair  .^raton  to  Seiior  Moreno,  dated  January  8th,  1834.  See 
Mo"*'  ir,  b.:-U)tical,  pnlitiiial,  and  descriptive,  on  the  Falkland  Islands,  by  Robert 
(yreonhoT;,  .'.iblished  in  ti'e  New  Tork  Merchants'  Magazine  for  February,  1843. 


''/-*1 


* 

a 
tl 

Oi 

ei 

S. 

C( 

th 

rai 

tra 

Na 

'  .< 

i\B 
OUi 

the 

Adi 

Wil 

men 

mot 

ance 

occu 

yem 

bare 

river 

con8( 

allla 

appoi 

UtfflOl 


•■n 

cock, 

niledf 

Horn, 

Sea-Gu 

Austva) 

coaat,  e. 

of  long] 

north  wa 

perfectlj 

ibove  si 

the  Indi 

irrived 

MDth-W( 

than  anj 

reached 

PIying.p 


[1834. 

lition,  ft!  it 
Kory  of  the 
o  over  the 
►rnia.    Thn 

conductipg 

Pacific,  aro 
ice  of  these 

to  establiah 
icy  and  duty 
the  attempts 
his  important 

;th  the  history 
act  of  the  oc- 
1833.    After 
,  these  islands 
Bs,   as  leaving 
)f  the  viceroy 
jovernment  to 
B31,  a  collision 
United  States, 
issession  of  the 
and,  a  repre- 
at  government. 
Ion,  Lord  Pal- 
reply,  main- 
islands,  on  the 
entirely  disre- 
[tion   of   n90, 
[either  by  Great 
Jouth  America 
those  parts  of 
|ich  are  already 
lliad,    ia   1827 
.••.s;.cv!   10  the 

jf  Oregon  and 

)f    the  United 

Wilkes,  who 

lary  8th,  1834.  See 
Iwand.,  by  I^beit 
iFebruary,  1842. 


1843.] 


KXPLOMNO    VOTAOE   OF    WILKBI. 


876 


had  been  ipecially  directed  to  survey  'md  examine  those  countrief, 
ts  carefully  ai  circumstances  wouir)  permit,     f lieutenant  Wilkef ,  in 
the  bt .  jp  of  war  Vinconnes,  arrivoif  otr  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia, 
on  the  87th  of  April ;  but,  finding  it  haKardous  to  ii  («mpt  the 
entrance,  he  sailed  to  the  Strait  of  l''ica,  and  anchored  <n  Puget'i 
Sound,  near  Nasquallyi  a  post  belonging  to   the   Hudson'rt   Buy 
Company,  from  which  he  despatched  several  surveying  parties  inio 
the  interior.    One  of  these  parties  crossed  the  great  v  osternmo^t 
range  of  mountains  to  the  Columbia ;  and,  having  visited  i  •  Jntisii 
trading  po^(H  of  Okinagan,  Colville,  and  Walla- Walla,  rciurnod  to 
Na'^ouiD* .     Another  party  proceeded  southward  to  the  Cowelitz, 
r  id  li•>vn^  tliii  river  to  the  main  trunk  of  the  Columbia,  which  was 
examined  upwards  as  far  as  Walla- Walla,  and  downwards  to  tf^e 
oueat .     In  the  mean  time,  oUier  parties  were  engaged  in  surveying 
the  coasts  and  harbors  on  the  Pacific,  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  and 
•\ii     Admiralty  Inlet,  and  particularly  in  exploring  the  valleys  of  the 
Willumet  River,  emptying  into  the  Columbia,  and  of  the  Sacra- 
mento, falling  into  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco,  which  are  perhaps  the 
most  valuable  portions  of  Oregon  and  California.    The  perform- 
ance of  these  important  duties  was  accompanied  by  an  unfortunate 
occurrence.      The  sloop  of  war  Peacock,  one  of  the  exploring 
vessels,  commanded  by  Lieut.  William  L.  Hudson,  struck  on  the 
bar  at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  while  attempting  to  enter  that 
river,  on  the  18th  of  July,  and  was  lost ;  her  crew,  however,  in 
consequence  of  the  perfect  discipline  maintained  on  board,  were 
all  landed  in  safety,  with  her  instruments  and  papers,  on  Cape  Dis- 
appointment, where   they   were  received,  and  treated  with  the 
utmost  hospitality,  by  the  agents  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company, 
residing  in  the  vicinity.* 

*  The  exploring  iquadron,  consisting  of  the  sloops  of  war  Vineennes  and  Pea- 
cock, store-ship  Relief,  brig  Porpoise,  and  schooners  Sea-Gull  and  Flying-Fish, 
niled  from  the  Chesapeake  oa  the  19th  of  August,  1838,  and  passed  around  Cape 
Horn,  where  several  months  were  employed  in  exploring,  and,  unfortunately,  the 
8ea-Gull  was  lost,  with  all  on  board.  Lieutenant  Wilkes  then  crossed  the  Pacific  to 
AuBtvali.',  south  of  which,  he,  in  January,  1840,  discovered  a  line  of  rocky,  ice-bound 
cout,  extending  nearly  under  the  Antarctic  circle,  from  the  92d  to  the  165th  degrees 
of  longitude  east  from  London ;  that  is,  about  1800  miles.  Thence  he  proceeded 
northward,  surveying  many  groups  of  islands  and  intricate  channels  hitherto  im- 
perfectly known,  to  the  coast  of  Oregon,  where  he  spent  the  summer  of  1841,  as 
ibove  stated ;  and,  having  completed  his  work,  he  returned,  with  his  vessels,  through 
the  India  seal,  and  aiouAd  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  to  the  United  States,  where  he 
urived  in  June,  1842.  The  •outhemmost  point  attained  was  in  the  Pacific,  south- 
wath-west  of  Cape  Horn,  in  latitude  of  70  degrees  14  minutes,  that  is,  farther  south 
than  any  navigator,  except  Cook  and  Weddell  had  previously  penetrated;  it  was 
reiched  on  the  S4tfc  of  March,  1839,  by  Lieut.  W.  M.  Walker,  commanding  the 
Flying-Fish.  ..,-,,,    _ 


,|        i  : 


I        1 


376 


OI?tfJ,tW!Jf* 


['>:'■: 


:\]'  f.-r,:;^,\,'.l',   n;-!:.!-     'i     '■  1  ^    •' 


■H'r.h-T:  rr'^''  ^  :' 


CHAPTER   XVIII. 


f7<f^fi\ 


c-^r.  :ri=n;< 


1842  TO  1845. 


EzoitenitiBt  in  the  United  States  respecting  Oregon — Bill  in  thq  genate  for  tba  im- 
mediate Occupation  of  Oregon  —  That  Bill  inconsistent  with  the  Convention  qf 
1827,  between  the  United  States  and  Great  Britain  —  R«newal  of  Negotiations  be- 
tween  the  United  States  and  Great  Britain  —  Emigration  from  the  United  States 
to  Oregon -^Stato  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company's  Possessions— 'Con«lnsion. 


DuBiNo  the  latter  years  of  the  period  to  which  the  preceding 
chapter  relates,  the  government  and  people  of  the  United  States 
were  becoming  seriously  interested  in  the  subject  of  the  claims  of 
the  republic  to  countries  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  which  had 
so  long  remained  undetermined.  The  population  of  the  Union 
had,  in  &ct,  been  so  much  increased,  that  large  numbers  of  per* 
sons  were  to  be  found  in  every  part,  whose  spirit  of  enterprise  and 
adventure  could  not  be  restrained  within  the  limits  of  the  states 
and  organized  territories;  and,  as  the  adjoining  central  division 
of  the  continent  offered  no  inducements  to  settlers,  those  who 
did  not  choose  to  fix  their  habitations  in  Texas,  began  to  direct 
their  views  towards  the  valleys  of  the  Columbia,  where  they  ex' 
pected  to  obtain  rich  lands  without  cost,  and  security  under  the 
flag  of  the  stars  and  stripes. 

The  period  had,  in  fact,  arrived,  when  the  countries  west  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  were  to  receive  a  civilized  population  from  the 
United  States. 

This  feeling  began  to  manifest  itself,  about  the  year  1837,  by 
the  formation  of  societies  for  emigration  to  Oregon,  in  various 
parts  of  the  Union,  and  especially  in  those  which  had  themselves 
been  most  recently  settled,  and  were  most  thinly  peopled.  From 
these  associations,  and  from  American  citizens  already  established 
in  Oregon,  petitions  were  presented  to  Congress,  as  well  as  resolu* 
tions  from  the  legislatures  of  states,*  urging  the  general  government 
either  to  settle  the  questions  of  right  as  to  the  country  west  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  by  definitive  arrangement  with  the  other  claimant, 

*  Nearly  all  these  petitions  and  resolutions  came  from  Indiana,  Illinois,  Missouri, 
and  Michigan. 


1840.].    EXCITEMENT   IN  THE   U.    STATES   RBr?ECTINa   OREGON.     377 


or  to  take  immediate  civil  and  military  possession  of  that  country  ;< 
and  bills,  having  for  their  object  the  accomphshment  of  one  or  both  of 
these  ends,  were  annually  introduced  into  the  Senate  or  the  House  of 
Representatives  of  the  Uni<ni.  The  members  of  the  executive  branch 
of  the  government,  particularly  Messrs.  Forsyth  and  Poinsett,  the 
able  and  energetic  secretaries  of  state  and  of  war,  were  likewise 
assiduously  engaged  in  collecting  information  respecting  the  nature 
and  grounds  of  the  claims  of  the  United  States,  and  the  most 
effective  means  of  enforcing  them,  in  order  that  the  government 
might,  when  necessary,  act  with  vigor  and  certainty,  and  be  justi- 
fied before  the  world.  The  information  thus  obtained  was,  from 
time  to  time,  published,  by  order  of  Congress,  for  the  instruction 
of  the  people  on  points  so  important ;  ''*'  but  no  bill  relating  to  Ore- 
gon was  passed  by  either  house  before  1843,  nor  was  any  decisive 
measure  on  the  subject  adopted  by  the  American  government. 

The  British  government  was,  meanwhile,  not  unmindful  of  its 
interests  in  the  territories  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  Its  views 
and  intenti<His  were  not  proclaimed  to  the  world  annually,  in  par- 
liamentary speeches  or  executive  reports :  but  the  Admiralty  caused 
the  lower  part  of  the  Columbia  River,  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco, 
and  the  adjacent  coasts  of  the  Pacific,  to  be  carefully  surveyed,  in 
1839,  by  Captain  Belcher ;  f  and  the  Colonial  Office,  and  Board  of 
Trade,  were  in  constant  communication  with  the  governor  and  di- 


I  u: 


is 


*  Among  these  documents,  the  principal  are  the  following,  Viz. :  Report  to  the 
Senate,  with  Maps,  and  a  Bill  for  the  Occupation  of  Oregon ;  presented  by  Mr.  Linn, 
June  6th,  1838  —  lieports  of  the  Committee  on  Foreign  Affairs,  of  the  House  of 
Representatives,  respecting  the  Territory  of  Oregon,  with  a  Map,  presented  Jan.  4th 
and  Feb.  16th,  1839,  by  Mr.  Gushing,  accompanied  by  a  bill  to  provide  for  the  pro- 
tection of  the  citizens  of  the  United  States  residing  in  that  territory,  or  trading  on 
the  Colombia  River,  and  various  documents  in  proof —  Memoir,  Historical  and  Polit- 
ical, on  the  North- West  Coast  of  North  America,  and  the  adjacent  Countries,  with  a 
Map  and  a  Geographical  View  of  those  Countries,  by  Robert  Greenhow,  Translator 
and  Librarian  to  the  Department  of  State ;  presented  Feb.  10th,  1840,  by  Mr.  Linn 
(see  Preface  to  this  History)  —  Report  of  the  Hon.  J.  R.  Poinsett,  Secretary  of  War, 
in  relation  to  the  establishment  of  a  line  of  Military  Posts  from  the  Missouri  River  to 
the  Columbia,  1840  —  Report  of  the  Military  Committee  of  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives, on  the  Subject  of  the  Occupation  and  Defence  of  the  Columbia  Countries; 
presented  by  Mr.  Pendleton,  May  25th,  1842. 

i  Narrative  of  a  Voyage  round  the  World,  performed  in  her  Majesty's  Ship  Sul- 
phur, during  the  Tears  1836—1842,  by  Captain  Sir  Edward  Belcher,  R.  N.  This 
large  '-nd  expensive  work,  though  very  amusing  to  the  general  reader,  abounds  in 
misstatements  and  inconsistencies,  and  contains  scarcely  a  single  fact  or  observation 
of  importance  with  regard  to  the  different  places  visited.  The  results  of  the  scientific 
investigations,  especially  the  geographical  positions  of  many  important  points,  which 
were  determined,  doubtless,  with  the  utmost  accvracy  daring  the  voyage,  are  omitted. 

48 


1: 1 1 


!( 


*  if' 


878         TBEATT   BETWEEN   THE    V.    STATES    AND   G.   BRITAIN.     [1842. 


\t 


"< 


r  <. 


rectors  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  who  possessed  more  exact 
information,  on  all  subjects  connected  with  North- West  America, 
than  dould  be  obtained  from  any  other  source.  The  British  gov- 
ernment and  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  have,  indeed,  always 
acted  in  concert;  and  the  measures  devised  by  them  are  carried 
into  execution  immediately,  without  previous  reference  to  the  legis- 
lature. Beyond  the  limits  of  the  government  offices,  and  of  the 
Hudson's  Bay  House,  no  one  in  England  seems  to  have  taken  the 
slightest  interest  in  any  thing  relating  to  North- West  America. 

In  the  spring  of  1842,  Lord  Ashburton  arrived  at  Washington, 
as  minister  extraordinary  from  Great  Britain,  with  instructions  and 
powers  to  settle  certain  questions  of  difference  between  the  two 
nations ;  and  it  was,  at  first,  generally  supposed,  in  the  United 
States,  and,  indeed,  in  Great  Britain,  that  the  establishment  of 
boundaries  on  the  Pacific  side  of  America  would  be  one  of  the 
objects  of  his  mission.  A  treaty  was,  however,  concluded,  in 
August  of  that  year,  between  him  and  Mr.  Webster,  the  secretary 
of  state  of  the  United  States,  in  which  all  the  undetermined  parts 
of  the  line  separating  the  territories  of  the  two  powers,  on  the 
Atlantic  side  of  America,  were  defined  and  settled ;  but  no  allu- 
sion was  made  to  any  portion  of  the  continent  west  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains.  Whether  or  not  Lord  Ashburton  was  empowered  by 
his  government  to  treat  for  a  settlement  of  the  question  at  issue 
respecting  the  latter  territories,  no  means  have  yet  been  afforded  for 
learning.  No  mention  of  countries  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains 
is  to  be  found  in  the  published  correspondence  relative  to  ths  nego- 
tiation ;  but  the  question  was  discussed  by  the  plenipotentiaries,  as 
declared  in  the  following  passage  of  President  Tyler's  message  to 
Congress,  at  the  opening  of  the  session,  on  the  7th  of  December, 
1842:  <'In  advance  of  the  acquisition  of  individual  rights  to 
these  lands,  [west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,]  sound  policy  dictates 
that  every  effort  should  be  resorted  to,  by  the  two  governments,  to 
settle  their  respective  claims.  It  became  evident,  at  an  early  hour 
of  the  late  negotiations,  that  any  attempt,  for  the  time  being,  satis- 
factorily to  determine  those  rights,  would  lead  to  a  protracted 
discussion,  which  might  embrace  in  its  failure  other  more  pressing 
matters ;  and  the  executive  did  not  regard  it  as  proper  to  waive  all 
the  advantages  of  an  honorable  adjustment  of  other  difficulties,  of 
great  magnitude  and  importance,  because  this,  not  so  immediately 
pressing,  stood  in  the  way.  Although  the  difficulties  referred  to 
may  not,  for  several  years  to  come,  involve  the  peace  of  the  two 


1842.]      BILL   IN  THE   U.    8.    SENATE   FOR   OCCUPTINO   OREGON.     379 

countries,  yet  I  shall  not  delay  to  urge  on  Great  Britain  the  impor- 
tance of  its  early  settlement."  The  treaty  was  ratified  and  defini- 
tively confirmed  by  both  governments ;  the  exclusion  of  the  Oregon 
question  from  it,  however,  increased  the  excitement  respecting  that 
country  in  the  United  States,  and  an  excitement  on  the  same  subject 
was  soon  after  created  in  Great  Britain. 

The  part  of  the  president's  message  above  quoted  was  referred 
to  the  committees  on  foreign  affairs  in  both  houses  of  Congress ; 
and,  a  few  days  afterwards,  Mr.  Linn,  one  of  the  senators  from 
Missouri,  who  had  always  displayed  the  strongest  interest  with  re- 
gard to  the  territories  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  hnd 
aijsiduously  endeavored  to  effect  their  incorporation  into  the 
republic,  brought  a  bill  into  the  Senate  for  the  occupation  and 
settlement  of  the  territory  of  Oregon,  and  for  extending  the  laws 
of  the  United  States  over  it.  This  bill  proposed  that  the  presi- 
dent cause  to  be  erected,  at  suitable  places  and  distances,  a  line 
of  forts,  not  exceeding  five  in  number,  from  points  on  the  Missouri 
and  Arkansas  Rivers,  to  the  best  pass  for  entering  the  valley  of  the 
Columbia,  and  also  at  or  near  the  mouth  of  that  river ;  that  six 
hundred  and  forty  acres  of  land  be  granted  to  every  white  male 
inhabitant  of  Oregon,  of  the  age  of  eighteen  years  and  upwards, 
who  shall  cultivate  and  use  them  for  five  years,  or  to  his  heirs  at 
law,  in  case  of  his  decease,  with  an  addition  of  one  hundred  and 
sixty  acres  for  his  wife,  and  the  same  for  each  of  his  children  under 
the  age  of  eighteen  years ;  that  the  jurisdiction  of  the  courts  of 
Iowa  be  extended  over  the  countries  stretching  from  that  territory, 
and  from  the  states  of  Missouri  and  Arkansas,  to  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, and  over  all  countries  west  of  those  mountains,  between  the 
42d  and  the  49th  parallels ;  and  that  justices  of  the  peace  be 
appointed  for  those  countries,  as  now  provided  by  law  for  Iowa, 
who  shall  have  power  to  arrest  and  commit  for  trial  all  offenders 
against  the  laws  of  the  United  States ;  provided  that  any  subject 
of  Great  Britain,  who  may  have  been  so  arrested  for  crimes  or 
misdemeanors  committed  in  the  countries  west  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  while  they  remain  free  and  open  to  the  people  of 
both  nations,  shall  be  delivered  up  to  the  nearest  or  most  conve- 
nient British  authorities,  to  be  tried  according  to  British  laws. 

This  bill,  it  will  be  seen,  contained  nearly  the  same  provisions  as 
that  which  had  been  discussed  in  the  House  of  Representaiives  in 
the  session  of  1828-29,*  with  the  addition  of  the  promise  of  grants 


See  p.  355. 


380       DEBATE    IN   THE    SENATE   OF   THE    U.    S.    ON  OREOON.     {1842. 


i.Ml 


of  land  to  the  settlers,  after  a  certain  period  of  occupancy.  It  was 
defended,  generally,  on  the  grounds  that  its  adoption  would  be  the 
exercise,  by  the  United  States,  of  rights  which  were  unquestionable, 
and  had  been  long  unjustly  withheld  from  them  by  Great  Britain ; 
and  that,  takmg  this  for  granted,  it  afforded  the  best  means,  in  all 
respects,  of  making  good  those  rights,  and  securing  to  the  republic 
the  ultimate  possession  of  the  territories  west  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, which  must  otherwise  fall,  or  rather  remain,  irretrievably,  in 
the  hands  of  another  power.  The  opponents  to  the  bill  differed  in 
their  views  of  its  various  provisions:  many  were  averse  to  any 
action  whatsoever  on  the  subject  at  that  time,  while  others  con- 
sidered the  measures  recommended  as  impolitic,  expensive,  and  by 
no  means  calculated  to  attain  the  end  proposed;  but  they  were 
unanimous  in  opinion  that  the  cession  of  lands  in  Oregon  to 
American  citizens  would  be  an  infraction  of  the  convention  of 
1827  with  Great  Britain,  and  could  not,  therefore,  be  legally  made 
until  that  agreement  had  been  rescinded  in  the  manner  therein 
stipulated.  In  this,  as  in  the  other  provisions  of  the  bill,  however, 
its  advocates  were  unwilling  to  make  any  material  cli  ''e,  regarding 
them  all  as  essential  to  the  objects  in  view. 

Mr.  Linn,  as  the  proposer  of  the  bill,  explained  and  defended 
each  of  its  provisions,  on  the  grounds  of  their  justice,  of  their  com- 
patibility with  the  existing  diplomatic  arrangements,  and  of  their 
efficiency  for  the  attainment  of  the  end  in  view,  namely,  the  pos- 
session of  these  extensive  ind  valuable  territories  by  the  United 
States,  to  which  they  belong  of  right.  After  recapitulating  the 
various  grounds  of  that  right,  he  contended  that  the  United  States 
had  been  deprived  of  the  privileges  of  the  joint  occupancy,  secured 
to  them  in  the  convention  of  1827,  by  the  encroachments  of  the 
Hudson's  Bay  Company,  which,  under  the  direct  protection  of  the 
British  government,  had  taken  actual  possession  of  the  whole  terri- 
tory beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains.  Great  Britain,  he  insisted,  was 
there  employing  the  same  policy  and  mechanism,  of  a  great  trading 
company,  by  means  of  which  she  had  made  her  .vay  to  the  domin- 
ion of  India ;  she  already  practically  occupied  all  that  she  ever 
claimed  south  and  north  of  the  Columbia ;  her  agents  had  directly 
avowed  that  she  would  not  give  up  the  establishments  which  she 
had  encouraged  her  subjects  to  form  there ;  and,  as  a  further  proof 
of  her  intentions,  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  had,  within  a  few 
years,  founded  farming  settlements  on  an  extensive  scale,  from 
which  large  exports  of  provisions  are  made  to  the  Russian  posts 


I?   M 


1848.]  DEBATES  IN  THE  SENATE  OF  THE  U.  S.  ON  OREGON.   381 


and  the  Sandmch  Islands.  The  bill  proposed  does  not  pretend 
to  define  the  territory  of  the  United  States,  or  to  dispossess  Great 
Britain  of  what  she  now  holds,  but  merely  to  do  what  she  has 
herself  done.  Can  that  power  object  to  proceedings,  on  the  part 
of  the  United  States,  similar  to  her  own  ?  She  has  extended  her 
jurisdiction  over  Oregon,  has  built  foi.s,  and  set  up  farming  and 
other  establishments.     Why  cannot  the  Americans  do  the  same  ? 

Mr.  Morehead  supported  the  same  views.  Examining  the  con- 
vention of  1827,  he  conceived  that  it  provided  only  for  temporary 
occupation  ;  but  that  the  felling  of  forests,  the  construction  of 
regular  habitations,  the  fencing  in  of  fields,  the  regular  improve- 
ment of  the  soil,  the  fitting  up  of  mills  and  workshops,  and,  added 
to  all  these,  the  erection  of  forts  to  protect  them,  as  had  been 
done  by  the  British,  in  Oregon,  meant  something  more  ;  and  were 
intended  to  constitute  a  lasting,  and,  of  course,  exclusive  occupa- 
tion of  the  places  thus  appropriated.  Now,  these  are  not  merely 
the  acts  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  ;  they  are  done  under  the 
sanction  of  the  British  government,  and  they  form  the  system 
adopted  every  where,  by  that  government,  for  territorial  encroach- 
ment, especially  against  nations  capable  of  resisting  attack. 

Mr.  Woodbury  took  a  view  somewhat  different  of  the  bearing 
of  the  convention  of  1827,  which  he  regarded  as  leaving  to  each 
party  the  right  to  settle,  provided  the  trade  were  left  free  to  both ; 
in  support  of  which  construction,  he  cited  the  declarations  of  the 
British  ministers,  during  the  negotiations  on  that  subject,  and  the 
stipulations  proposed  by  them,  that  ''  neither  party  should  assume 
or  exercise  any  right  of  sovereignty  or  dominion  over  any  p«rt  of 
the  country,"  and  that  "no  settlement  then  existing,  or  which 
might  in  future  be  made,  should  ever  be  adduced,  by  either  party, 
in  support  or  furtherance  of  such  claims  of  sovereignty  or  domin- 
ion." For  these  reasons,  and  others  which  he  presented,  and  sup- 
ported by  powerful  arguments,  he  considered  that  the  bill  should 
pass,  and  that  the  United  States  should  no  longer  hesitate  to  exercise 
rights  which  Great  Britain  did  not  scruple  to  exercise  herself. 

Mr.  Phelps  concurred  with  Mr.  Woodbury  in  his  construction 
of  the  convention  of  1827,  which,  he  conceived,  would  not  be 
violated  by  the  section  of  the  bill  providing  for  grants  of  land  to 
settlers.  The  grants  proposed  are  but  prospective.  Citizens  of 
the  United  States  are  invited  to  settle  in  Oregon,  and,  after 
having  resided  there  five  years,  certain  portions  of  land  are  to  be 
secured  to  them.     Within  those  five  years,  the  questions  of  right 


\ 


882      DEBATES    IN   THE    SENATE    OF    THE    U.    S.    ON   OREGON.     [1843. 


t,; 


to  the  territory  will  have  been  determined,  and  if  those  who  have 
acted  on  the  faith  of  the  invitation  do  not  then  receive  the  advan- 
tages promised,  their  government  will,  of  course,  be  bound  to 
indemnify  them. 

Mr.  McRoberts  dwelt  particularly  on  the  importance  of  the  con- 
vention of  1790,  between  Great  Britain  and  Spain ;  the  fifth 
article  of  which,  according  to  his  construction,  assured  to  Spain 
the  sovereignty  of  all  the  coasts  south  of  Nootka  Sound. 

Mr.  Henderson  considered  the  bill  of  no  value,  without  the 
clause  for  the  appropriation  of  lands.  He  regarded  the  act  of  the 
British  Parliament,  extending  the  jurisdiction  of  the  courts  of 
Canada  over  Oregon,  as  taking  possession  of  the  country.  The 
United  States  must  do  the  same  ;  on  their  taking  the  measure  now 
proposed,  a  conflict  of  jurisdictions  would  ensue,  which  must  at  once 
compel  the  adjustment  of  the  question  of  right. 

Mr.  Huntingdon,  though  firmly  convinced  of  the  rights  of  the 
United  States  to  the  territory  in  question,  and  of  the  propriety  of 
making  them  good  so  soon  as  possible,  could  not  but  consider  the 
bill  as  an  infringement  of  the  existing  convention  with  Great 
Britain.  The  present  state  of  things  should  undoubtedly  be 
ended,  but  in  the  manner  provided  ;  namely,  by  giving  immediate 
notice  to  Great  Britain  of  the  intention  of  the  United  States  to 
abrogate  that  convention  at  the  expiration  of  a  year.  . 

Mr.  Sevier  considered  that,  the  justice  of  the  claims  of  the 
United  States  being  admitted,  there  should  be  no  delay  in  taking 
possession  of  the  country  claimed,  for  which  the  only  means 
were,  to  provide  an  adequate  amount  of  population  within  the 
shortest  time.  Not  only  should  the  lands  be  granted  to  them,  and 
forts  be  built  and  garrisoned  for  their  protection,  but,  if  necessary, 
a  railroad  should  be  made  from  the  Missouri  to  the  Columbia,  over 
which  emigrants  might  be  conveyed  in  two  or  three  days. 

Mr.  McDuffie  opposed  the  bill  in  toto.  He  insisted  that  its 
adoption  would  be  a  violation  of  the  convention  with  Great 
Britain  ;  as  its  tendency  was,  and  could  be,  no  other  than  to  take 
possession  of  the  country,  and  to  make  ready,  by  all  means  and 
appliances,  to  maintain  that  possession.  It  was  an  invitation  to 
the  citizens  of  the  Union  —  not  to  carry  on  the  fur  trade,  nor  to 
do  that  which  the  convention  permits  —  but  to  settle  permanently. 
For  such  a  measure  he  denied  that  any  emergency  then  called. 
The  question  had  slept  for  many  years,  whilst  the  United  States 
were  at  the  height  of  their  prosperity  ;  and  it  was  most  imprudent 


1843.]       DEBATES    IN   THE    SENATE    OF    THE    U.    S.    ON    OREGON.    383 

to  bring,  it  up  now,  when  their  condition  was  far  otherwise,  and 
to  brandish  the  sword  in  the  face  of  a  powerful  opponent,  when 
there  wes  every  probability  that  the  matter  might  be  arranged 
peaceably  by  negotiation.  Great  Britain  had  done  nothing  which 
indicated  an  intention  to  estabUsh  for  herself  an  exclusive  oc- 
cupation: her  forts  were  nothing  more  than  stockades,  made  by 
her  traders  for  their  protection  against  Indians ;  and  her  subjects 
have  interfered  with  American  citizens  only  by  underselling  them 
in  the  commerce  with  the  natives.  He  then  proceeded  to  inquire 
what  advantages  the  United  States  could  derive  from  the  terri- 
tories of  which  it  was  proposed,  at  these  hazards  and  costs,  to 
take  possession.  He  represented  the  whole  region  beyond  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  and  a  vast  tract  between  that  chain  and  the 
Mississippi,  as  a  desert,  utterly  without  value  for  agricultural  pur- 
poses, and  which  no  American  citizen  should  be  condemned  to 
inhabit,  unless  as  a  punishment ;  and  he  ridiculed  the  idea  that 
steam  could  ever  be  employed  to  facilitate  communications  across 
the  continent,  between  the  Columbia  countries  and  the  states  of 
the  Union.  The  expenses  which  the  passage  of  the  bill  must 
entail,  would,  he  conceived,  be  incalculable,  whilst  no  returns 
could  be  expected  for  them.  The  fur  trade,  if  advantageous, 
could  benefit  only  a  few  capitalists,  for  whose  advancement  the 
agriculture,  commerce,  and  industry,  of  the  whole  republic  should 
not  be  taxed.  In  conclusion,  he  entreated  the  Senate  to  pause  — 
to  wait  a  year,  or  two  years,  in  order  to  see  what  might  be  done 
by  peaceful  means,  and  without  a  ruinous  xvaste  of  resources. 

Mr.  Calhoun  presented  a  summary  of  the  ground  of  the  claims 
of  the  United  States  and  of  Great "  Britain  to  the  territories  in 
question,  and  of  the  arrangements  attempted,  as  well  as  of  those 
made  ;  and,  reviewing  the  provisions  of  the  bill,  he  conceived  that 
it  directly  violated  the  subsisting  convention  on  the  subject  be- 
tween the  two  nations.  The  American  government,  it  is  true, 
does  not,  by  this  bill,  confer  grants  of  land  upon  its  citizens,  but 
it  binds  itself  to  do  so ;  and  that  engagement  forms  a  complete 
reality  as  to  assuming  possession.  Upon  examining  all  the  acts  of 
Great  Britain,  with  regard  to  those  countries,  he  could  find  nothing 
in  them  of  equal  extent  and  force ;  the  act  of  Parliament  of  1821 
merely  extends  the  jurisdiction  of  British  laws  over  Britisli  sub- 
jects, and  authorizes  no  possession.  He  could  not  but  anticipate 
a  breach  of  the  peace  with  Great  Britain,  if  the  part  of  the  bill 
then  before  the  Senate,  relating  to  grants  of  land,  were  carried 


mi 


DEBATES    IN   THB    SENATE    OF   THE   V.    8.    ON   OMSON.    [1843. 


i-\ 


into  effect ;  all  its  other  provisions  he  regarded  favorably,  and  he 
was  resolved  to  contribute,  so  far  as  lay  in  his  power,  to  the  main- 
tenance of  all  the  rights  of  the  United  States  which  could  bo 
exercised  conformably  with  the  convention  of  1827.  He  believed 
the  possession  of  the  countries  of  the  Columbia  to  be  important  to 
the  United  States  in  many  respects ;  but  that  the  period  was  not 
come  when  their  occupation  should  be  attempted  at  the  risk  of  a 
war  with  the  most  powerful  nation  of  the  earths  Time,  he  con- 
sidered, would  do  more  for  the  United  States  than  they  could  do 
by  immediate  action  themselves :  the  advance  of  their  citizens  over 
the  western  regions  had  been  already  rapid  beyond  all  the  calcu- 
lations of  the  most  sanguine  statesmen ;  no  extraordinary  means 
were  required  from  their  government  to  accelerate  it.  He  was 
desirous  to  give  to  the  bill  all  the  attention  which  its  importance 
required ;  and  he  hoped  that  it  would  be  recommitted  to  the 
committee  on  foreign  relations,  whose  report  would  doubtless 
throw  additional  light  on  the  subject. 

Mr.  Benton  entered  at  length  into  the  history  of  discovery  and 
settlement  on  the  west  coasts  of  North  America  ;  reviewing,  at  the 
same  time,  the  various  conventions  between  civilized  nations  with 
regard  to  it.  He  considered  the  right  of  the  United  States  to 
the  whole  territory,  as  far  north  as  the  49th  parallel  of  latitude, 
to  be  determined  by  the  possession  of  Louisiana,  the  northern 
boundary  of  which  he  asserted  to  have  been  fixed  at  that  parallel, 
by  commissaries  appointed  agreeably  to  the  treaty  of  Utrecht. 
He  painted  in  glowing  colors  the  agricultural  advantages  of  the 
territory,  which  he  regarded  as  inferior  in  that  respect  to  none  in 
the  world,  and  the  importance  of  its  rivers,  which  were,  in  his 
view,  destined  to  serve  as  the  channels  for  the  conveyance  of  the 
teas  and  silks  of  China  to  the  Atlantic  regions  of  both  continents. 
He  strongly  recommended  the  passage  of  the  bill,  and  he  was 
prepared  for  war,  if  necessary,  rather  than  surrender  any  portion 
of  the  country  in  question. 

Mr.  Choate  opposed  the  provision  in  the  bill  for  grants  of  land ; 
but  in  all  other  particulars  he  was  entirely  in  favor  of  it.  He  con- 
tended that,  agreeably  to  the  convention  of  1827,  still  subsisting, 
neither  government,  as  a  government,  could  do  any  thing  to  divest 
the  citizens  or  subjects  of  the  other  of  the  enjoyment  of  the 
common  freedom  of  the  country ;  and  if  the  subjects  or  citizens 
of  either  made  establishments  there,  they  did  so  at  their  own 
risk,  and  neither  government  was  called  to  interfere.    If  this  bill 


I,  I 


1843.]  DEBATES  IN  THE  SENATE  OF  THE  U.  S.  ON  OBEOON.   385 


I  ; 


were  passed,  its  effect  must  be  to  hinder  some  part  of  the  territory 
from  being  open,  except  as  regards  American  citizens.  He  was 
willing  that  ^'^e  United  States  should,  as  Great  Britai^i  had  done, 
and  as  permitted  by  the  convention,  extend  their  jurisdiction  over 
all  the  countries  to  which  the  bill  applies,  and  erect  forts  where 
needed  ;  but  not  do  more.  If  they  had  not  done  so  earlier,  it 
was  to  be  attributed  to  their  own  supineness,  not  to  the  injustice 
of  the  other  party.  In  conclusion,  he  considered  the  matter  as 
open  for  negotiation,  and  that  no  time  should  be  lost  in  terminating 
the  questions  at  issue ;  and,  as  the  first  step,  he  would  recommend 
that  notice  be  given  to  Great  Britain  of  the  intention  of  the  United 
States  to  abrogate  the  existing  convention  at  the  end  of  a  year. 

Mr.  Berrien  objected  to  the  bill  proposed,  on  many  grounds,  as 
to  its  principles  and  its  details.  The  question  was  one  of  the 
utmost  gravity,  —  of  a  future  empire,  to  be  founded  in  the  west, 
by  the  institutions  and  commerce  of  the  United  States,  —  a  ques- 
tion with  which  weighty  considerations  are  complicated,  including 
an  important  compact  with  a  foreign  power.  That  power  has  its 
own  views  on  this  question,  at  variance  with  those  of  the  United 
States,  but  in  which  she  doubtless  believes  as  fully.  This  bill, 
however,  supposes  all  the  right  to  be  on  the  side  of  the  Union, 
which  is  thus  legislating  upon  an  ex  parte  decision.  The  territory, 
which  forms  the  subject  of  the  discussion,  is  a  barren  and  savage 
region,  as  yet  unoccupied  by  the  people  of  either  nation,  except 
for  hunting,  fishing,  and  trading  with  the  natives ;  all  which  are 
conducted  freely  and  equally  by  the  people  of  both  nations,  under 
the  faith  of  a  convention  to  that  effect :  and  by  the  side  of  this 
compact  a  bill  is  placed,  which  assumes  and  engages  to  give  the 
soil  itself,  and  all  that  goes  with  it,  not  merely  for  the  term  of  the 
duration  of  the  convention,  but  <'  as  long  as  the  grass  shall  grow 
or  the  waters  shall  flow."  The  patents,  thus  granted,  would  bar 
all  British  subjects  from  particular  spots ;  and  the  act  of  granting 
them,  being  a  clear  and  positive  appropriation,  by  the  American 
government,  of  that  domain,  would  certainly  be  a  violation  of  the 
compact.  It  has  been  alleged  that  the  patents  are  not  imme- 
diate, but  provisional ;  that  the  government  pledges  itself  to  issue 
them  to  those  entitled  to  receive  them,  at  the  end  of  five  years : 
but  there  is  no  difference  between  these  two  forms  of  the  act  of  a 
government — of  a  perpetual  body;  the  parties  are  put  into 
present  possession,  and  protection  is  promised  to  them  there.  The 
bill,  moreover,  violates  the  faith  of  the  political  contract  at  home, 
40 


!|  • 


iB 


'K, !  '■ 


t  i ,  i* 


til:.:  I 


i>' 


386      DKBATB8   Ilf   THE    SENATE    Or   THE   U.    S.    ON   OREGON.    [1843. 


%' 


by  interfering  with  the  treaty-making  power  of  the  executive. 
The  adjustment  of  the  matter  by  negotiation  with  Great  Britain 
is  only  postponed,  in  order  that  it  may  be  soon  resumed,  with  a 
prospect  of  accommodation ;  and  it  is  most  inexpedient,  at  such 
a  moment,  to  interfere  with  the  legitimate  organ  of  the  govern- 
ment for  such  functions.  Should  the  bill  pass,  it  would  warrant, 
in  his  opinion,  the  exercise,  by  the  president,  of  the  qualified  veto, 
given  to  him  by  the  constitution,  for  the  protection  of  the  peculiar 
prerogative  of  his  office. 

Mr.  Archer  directed  his  attention  chiefly  to  what  he  considered 
as  the  two  great  points  presented  for  consideration  by  this  bill ; 
namely,  the  consistency  of  the  provision  for  granting  allodial 
titles  to  lands  in  Oregon,  with  the  stipulations  of  the  convention 
of  18£I7  ;  and  the  general  policy  of  accelerating  the  settlement 
of  that  territory  by  the  people  of  the  United  States.  Upon  the 
first  point  he  showed,  by  reference  to  the  proceedings  and  nsults 
of  the  several  negotiations  between  the  United  States  and  Great 
Britain  on  the  subject,  that  the  title  to  the  territory  had  been  the 
only  question  discussed ;  that  no  agreement  on  that  question  had 
ever  been  attained  ;  and  that  the  two  governments,  finding  it  im- 
possible to  arrive  at  a  satisfactory  conclusion,  had,  by  the  con- 
vention, dissoluble  at  the  pleasure  of  either,  left  the  country 
equally  free  to  the  people  of  both.  The  title  was  thus  in  suspense, 
and  with  it  were  suspended  all  the  privilege  ^  flowing  therefrom, 
except  those  of  temporary  use;  most  especially  was  suspended 
the  right  to  grant  a  property  in  the  soil ;  and  if  this  were  not  the 
true  meaning  and  intention  of  the  agreement,  it  was  vain  and 
useless.  No  breach  of  the  contract  on  the  part  of  Great  Britain 
had  been  proved ;  the  people  of  that  nation  had  indeed  gained 
advantages  in  trade  over  the  citizens  of  the  United  States :  yet  it 
was  not  by  constraint  or  intimidation,  but  by  greater  dexterity  in 
business,  which  involved  no  contravention  of  stipulations,  and 
could  authorize  no  contravention  on  the  other  side.  If  the  present 
bill  should  become  a  law,  the  United  States  must  be  prepared  to 
maintain  and  execute  all  its  provisions ;  and  Great  Britain,  though, 
like  the  United  States,  directly  interested  in  the  continuance  of 
peace,  would,  if  she  viewed  the  measures  in  question  as  an  in- 
fringement of  the  convention,  stand  upon  that  point,  when  she 
might  not  stand  upon  the  value  of  the  territory.  War  might  be 
the  consequence;  and  it  was  proper  to  consider  on  which  side 
the  advantages  would  be  in  the  contest,  and  what  would  be  its 


1843.]    DSBATC8    IN   THE    SBNATC    Or   THE   U.    I.    ON   OREGON,      fltft 


result!.  In  any  case,  whether  or  not  war  should  ensue,  the  ques^ 
tion  of  the  possession  of  Oregon  could  only  be  decided  by  nego* 
tiation ;  and  if,  at  the  end  of  a  war,  the  United  States  should 
obtain  all  that  they  here  claim,  it  would  be  but  a  poor  recompense 
for  the  evils  and  costs  incurred.  With  regard  to  the  policy  of 
accelerating  the  settlement  of  the  territory  west  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  by  American  citizens,  Mr.  Archer  coincided  nearly  in 
opinion  with  Mr.  McDuffie ;  he  considered  that  territory  as  of 
little  value  to  any  nation  ;  the  part  near  the  coast  alone  contained 
land  fit  for  agricultural  purposes,  and  there  were  no  harbors  which 
were  or  could  be  rendered  tolerable.  The  United  States  had 
seven  hundred  millions  of  acres  of  land  east  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains still  vacant,  of  which  a  large  portion  was  more  fertile  and 
salubrious  than  any  other  lands,  wherever  they  might  be,  even  in 
Oregon  ;  these  should  be  occupied  before  the  population  could 
with  reason  be  urged  to  establish  themselves  in  the  latter  country. 
In  conclusion,  he  had  no  objection  to  the  extension  of  the  juris- 
diction of  the  United  States  to  the  Pacific,  in  the  manner  proposed 
by  the  bill,  or  to  the  erection  of  forts  on  the  Columbia,  if  they 
should  be  found  necessary ;  or  to  any  other  measure  which  might 
be  taken,  pari  passu,  with  Great  Britain,  not  inconsistent  with  re- 
ciprocal stipulations  ;  but  he  should  oppose  the  provision  respecting 
grants  of  land,  not  only  for  the  reasons  already  given,  but  also 
because  it  would  tend  to  defeat  the  very  object  of  the  bill,  namely, 
the  ultimate  possession  of  the  country  west  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains by  the  United  States. 

To  the  objections  thus  made  to  his  bill,  Mr.  Linn  replied  at 
length,  displaying  considerable  ingenuity  of  argument,  particularly 
with  the  object  of  showing  that  all  which  was  thereby  openly  pro- 
posed had  been  already  done  in  a  covert  manner  by  Great  Britain. 
He  dwelt  on  the  great  importance  of  the  Oregon  countries,  —  on 
the  vast  extent  of  lands  on  the  Columbia  and  its  tributary  streams, 
which  were  said  to  exceed  in  productiveness  any  in  the  states 
of  the  Union,  —  and  on  the  number  and  excellence  of  the  harbors 
on  those  coasts,  the  use  of  which  was  imperatively  required  by 
the  American  whaling  vessels  employed  in  the  adjacent  ocean,  — 
on  the  facility  with  which  travel  and  transportation  might  be 
effected  across  the  continent,  by  means  of  ordinary  roads  at  pres- 
ent, and  by  railroads  hereafter ;  and  he  produced  a  number  of 
letters,  reports,  and  other  documents  from  various  sources,  con- 
firming all  these  statements.    Finally,  he  appealed  to  the  honor 


i^. 


888 


CONIIDBRATIOItl   ON   THE    CONVEITriON    Or    1837.        [1843. 


t 


and  generoaity  of  the  nation,  for  ita  protection  to  the  American 
citizens  already  eitablished  in  Oregon,  who  had  gone  thither  in 
confidence  that  buch  aid  would  be  «« tended  to  them,  and  were 
groaning  under  the  oppreBsions  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company.* 

Previous  to  the  final  vote,  Mr.  Archer  endeavored  to  have  the 
clause  respecting  the  grants  of  lands  struck  out ;  but  his  motion 
did  not  prevail,  and  on  the  3d  of  February,  1843,  the  bill  was 
passed  by  the  Senate,  twenty-four  being  for  and  twenty-two 
against  it.  It  was  immediately  sent  to  the  House  of  Representa- 
tives, in  which  a  report  against  its  passage  was  made  by  Mr. 
Adams,  the  chairman  of  the  committee  on  foreign  affairs ;  the 
session,  however,  expired  without  any  debate  on  the  subject  in 
that  House. 

In  order  to  determine  whether  the  bill  for  the  occupation  of 
Oregon,  passed  by  the  Senate  of  the  United  States,  in  1843,  could, 
if  it  had  become  a  law,  have  been  carried  into  fulfilment  without  a 
breach  of  public  faith,  until  after  the  abrogation  of  the  existing 
convention  with  Great  Britain,  in  the  manner  therein  stipulated,  it 
will  be  necessary  first  to  analyze  that  convention,  and  to  reduce 
the  various  permissions,  requirements  and  prohibitions,  involved  in 
it,  to  their  simplest  expressions.  The  two  nations,  on  agreeing, 
as  by  that  convention,  to  leave  the  territory  west  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  with  its  waters,  free  and  open  to  the  citizens  and 
subjects  of  both,  of  course  agreed  that  neither  should  exercise 
any  exclusive  dominion,  or  do  any  thing  calculated  to  hinder  the 
people  of  the  other  from  enjoying  the  promised  advantages  in  any 
part  of  that  territory.  Each  nation,  of  course,  reserved  to  itself 
the  right  to  provide  for  the  maintenance  of  peace  and  the  admin- 
istration of  justice  among  its  own  citizens^  and  to  appoint  agents 
for  that  purpose :  it  was,  indeed,  the  duty  of  each,  as  a  civilized 
power,  to  do  so  without  delay ;  and  it  was  morally  imperative  upon 
them  to  enter  into  a  supplementary  compact  for  the  exercise  of 
concurrent  jurisdiction,  in  cases  affecting  the  persons  or  interests 
of  subjects  or  citizens  of  both,  unless  provision  to  that  effect 
should  have  already  been  made  in  some  other  way.  Finally,  as 
the  country  was  inhabited  by  tribes  of  savages,  the  citizens  and 
subjects  of  each  of    the  civilized  nations  residing  therein  might 


*  This  was  destined  to  be  the  last  eifort  of  Mr.  Linn  for  the  advancement  of  the 
cause  to  which  he  had  so  long  devoted  his  powerful  energies.  He  expired  on  the 
3d  of  October,  1843,  at  his  residence  in  St.  Genevieve,  Missouri,  without  warning, 
and  probably  without  a  struggle.       ^  .. .  .    ^^ 


I 


[1843. 


1843.]        CONSIDERATIONS    ON   THE    CONTENTION    OF    1827. 


389 


American 

thither  in 

and  were 
npany.* 
o  have  the 

his  motion 
tie  bill  was 
twenty-two 
R,epreBenta- 
ide  by  Mr. 
affairs;  the 
)  subject  in 

jcupation  of 
1843,  could, 
nt  without  a 
the  existing 
stipulated,  it 
nd  to  reduce 
s,  involved  in 
on  agreeing, 
)f  the  Rocky 
citizens  and 
ould  exercise 
to  hinder  the 
itages  in  any 
ved  to  itself 
d  the  admin- 
>point  agents 
as  a  civilized 
Iperative  upon 
exercise  of 
|s  or  interests 
to   that  effect 
Finally,  as 
citizens  and 
|therein  might 

Ivancement  of  the 

expired  on  the 

[without  warning. 


take  precautions  tt>r  their  defence  against  attocks  from  those 
savages,  by  military  organization  among  themselves,  and  by  the 
erection  of  the  fortifications  necessary  for  that  special  purpose ; 
and  it  here  again  l)cciimo  the  duty  of  the  contracting  parties  to 
settle  by  compact  the  manner  in  which  their  governments  might 
jointly  or  separately  n  id  their  people  in  such  defence. 

Afl  the  advantages  offered  to  the  citizens  or  subjects  of  the  two 
nations  are  not  defined,  the  terms  of  the  convention  relating  to 
them  are  to  be  understood  in  their  most  extensive  favorable  sense ; 
including  the  privileges,  not  only  of  fishing,  hunting,  and  trading 
with  the  natives,  but  also  of  clearing  and  cultivating  the  ground, 
and  using  or  disposing  of  the  products  of  such  labor  in  any 
peaceful  way,  and  of  making  any  buildings,  dams,  dikes,  canals, 
bridges,  roads,  &c.,  which  the  private  citizens  or  subjects  of  the 
parties  might  make  in  their  own  countries  ;  under  no  other  restric- 
tions or  limitations  than  those  contained  in  the  clause  of  the  con- 
vention providing  for  the  freedom  and  openness  of  the  territory 
and  waters,  or  those  which  might  be  imposed  by  the  respective 
governments. 

This  appears  to  be  the  amount  of  the  permissions,  requirements, 
and  prohibitions,  of  the  convention  ;  and,  had  the  two  governments 
done  all  that  is  here  demanded,  no  difficulties  could  have  been 
reasonably  apprehended  —  so  long,  at  least,  as  the  territory  in  ques- 
tion remains  thinly  peopled.  These  things,  however,  have  not  all 
been  done;  not  only  has  no  supplementary  compact  been  made 
between  the  two  nations,  but  the  government  of  the  United  States 
has  neglected  to  secure  the  protection  of  their  laws  to  their  citi- 
zens, who  have  thus,  doubtless,  in  part,  been  prevented  from 
drawing  advantages  from  the  convention  equal  to  those  long  since 
enjoyed  by  British  subjects,  under  the  security  of  the  prompt  and 
efficient  measures  of  their  government. 

If  this  view  of  the  existing  convention  between  the  United 
States  and  Great  Britain,  relative  to  the  territory  west  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  be  correct,  and  embrace  all  its  permissions  and 
prohibitions,  neither  of  the  parties  could  be  justified,  during  the 
subsistence  of  the  agreement,  in  ordering  the  erection  of  forts  at 
the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  where  they  certainly  are  not  required 
for  protection  against  any  third  power,  and  in  promising  to  secure 
large  tracts  of  land  in  that  territory,  by  patent,  to  its  citizens  or 
subjects.  Had  the  bill  passed  by  the  Senate  in  1843  become  a 
law,  the  convention  would  from  that  moment  have  been  virtually 


J4       ( 


u> 


hu 


'in 


DEBATE    m   THE    BRITISH    PAIILIAMRNT    ON    ORROON.     [1843. 


and  violently  rescinded  ;  and  any  nttompt  to  enforce  the  measures 
would  undoubtedly  have  been  resisted  by  Great  Britain.  The 
abrogation  of  the  convention,  in  the  manner  therein  provided,  or 
in  aomo  other  way,  by  common  consent  of  the  parties,  should 
precede  all  attempts,  by  cither,  to  occupy  any  spot  in  the  territory 
permanently ;  and  whenever  the  government  of  either  nation 
considers  the  time  to  be  near,  in  which  such  occupation,  by  its  own 
citizens  or  subjects,  will  bo  ini^ispcnsable,  it  should  endeavor  to 
settle,  by  negotiation  with  the  other  power,  some  mode  of  eflccting 
that  object,  before  giving  notice  of  its  intention  to  abrogate  the 
agreement ;  for  such  a  notice  can  only  be  regarded  as  the  an- 
nouncement of  the  determination  of  the  party  giving  it  to  take 
forcible  possession  of  the  territory  at  the  end  of  the  term. 

The  reports  of  the  debates  in  the  American  Senate  on  the  bill 
for  the  occupation  of  Oregon,  reached  England  while  the  treaty, 
recently   concluded   at  Washington,  was  under  consideration  in 
Parliament ;  and  they  did  not  fail  to  elicit  some  observations  in 
the  House  of  Commons.     Lord  Palmcrston,  the  late-  secretary  for 
foreign  aflfairs,    and  then  leader  of    the   opposition,   pronounced 
that,  if  the  bill  should  pass,  and  be  ''cted  on,  it  would  be  equiva- 
lent  to  a  declaration  of  war,  as  it  would    bo  the  invasion  and 
seizure  of  a  territory  in  dispute,  by  virtue  of  a  decree  made  by 
one  of  the  parties  in  its  own  favor.     Mr.  Macaulay,  who  had  been 
the    secretary    of  war   under   the   previous  administration,    con- 
ceived that  the  fact  of  the  passage  of  such  a  bill  by  the  Senate, 
a  body  comprising  among  its  members  a  large  portion  of  the  men 
of  the  greatest  weight  and  most  distinguished  ability  in  the  United 
States,  showed  a  highly-excited  condition  of  the  public  mind  in 
that   country.       Mr.   Blewitt  quoted  the   words  of    one  of   the 
senators  in  the  debate,  as  being  a  most  violent  attack  on  England : 
and  he  regarded  the  mode  in  which  the  matter  had  been  dealt 
with  in  the  Senate  as  an  insult  to  his  nation.     Sir  Robert  Peel, 
the   premier,   in  answer,    simply  stated,  that  communications  of 
a  friendly   nature,    on  the  subject  of  Oregon,  were   then  going 
on   between   the   two  governments,    a   proposition   having   been 
addressed  to  the  United  States,  for  considering  the  best  means  of 
eifecting  a  conciliatory  adjustment  of  the   questions    respecting 
tiiuse  territories ;  and  that,  if  the  bill  introduced  into  the  American 
Senate  had  passed  both  Houses  of  Congress,  it  would  not  have 
received  the  sanction  of  the   executive,  which  had   given  assur- 
ances of  its  anxiety  to   settle   those  questions  by  negotiation. 


i 


1843.] 


KMIG  RATION    mOM   THE    U.    STATES   TO   OREGON. 


391 


le  measures 
ituin.    The 
provided,  or 
tics,  should 
the  territory 
ither  nation 
1,  by  its  own 
endeavor  to 
3  of  effecting 
abrogate  the 
3d  as  the  an- 
ig  it  to  talie 
0  term. 
Le  on  the  bill 
ile  the  treaty, 
insideration  in 
)b8ervations  in 
0-  secretary  for 
n,   pronounced 
mid  be  equiva- 
B  invasion  and 
ecree  made  by 
who  had  been 
listration,   con- 
ly  the  Senate, 
ion  of  the  men 
^  in  the  United 
public  mind  in 
one  of   the 
jk  on  England : 
had  been  dealt 
Robert  Peel, 
munications  of 
ere   then  going 
having   been 
best  means  of 
ions    respecting 
the  American 
rould  not  have 
td   given  assur- 
negotiation. 


This  last  declaration  from  Sir  Robert  Peel  was  confirmed  by  the 
proNidont  of  the  United  States,  in  his  message  sent  to  Congress  on 
the  0th of  December  following;  and,  in  February,  1844,  the  Hon- 
orable Richard  Pakonham  arrived  in  Washington,  as  minister  pleni- 
potentiary from  Groat  Britain,  with  full  instructions  to  treat  for  a 
definitive  arrangement  of  the  disputed  points  relative  to  the  coun- 
tries west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.''^ 

In  the  mean  time,  the  excitement  in  the  United  States  with  re- 
gard to  the  immediate  occupation  of  Oregon,  as  well  as  the  difficul- 
ties of  effecting  an  amicable  arrangement  of  the  questions  with  Great 
Britain  respecting  that  country,  had  increased  and  become  more 
general.  In  each  year  since  1838,  small  parties  of  emigrants  had  set 
out  from  Missouri  for  the  Columbia ;  but  they  had  suffered  so  much 
on  their  wa}',  from  hunger,  thirst,  fatigue,  and  a  dread  of  Indians, 
that  few  had  reached  the  place  of  their  destination,  and  those  who 
returned  to  the  United  States  gave  accounts  of  their  expeditions  by 
no  means  calculated  to  induce  others  to  follow  them.  On  exam- 
ining these  accounts,  however,  it  appeared  that  in  all  cases  the  par- 
ties had  been  insufficient  in  numbers,  or  were  not  provided  with  the 
requisite  supplies,  or  were  guided  and  commanded  by  incompetent 
persons ;  besides  which,  nothing  like  an  assurance  of  protection,  after 
they  should  have  made  their  settlements,  was  afforded  by  their  gov- 
ernment. On  the  faith  of  the  promise  of  such  protection,  held  out 
by  the  passage  through  the  Senate  of  the  bill  for  the  immediate 
occupation  of  Oregon,  a  thousand  persons,  men,  women,  and  chil- 
dren, assembled  at  Westport,  near  the  Missouri  River,  on  the  fron- 
tier of  the  state  of  Missouri,  from  which  they  began  their  march  to 
Oregon,  with  a  large  number  of  wagons,  horses,  and  cattle,  in  June, 
1843.t  They  pursued  the  route  along  the  banks  of  the  Platte, 
and  its  northern  branch,  which  had  been  carefully  surveyed  in  the 
preceding  year  by  Lieutenant  Fremont,  of  the  United  States  army,f 
to  the  South  Pass,  in  the  Rocky  Mountains ;  thence  through  the 
valleys  of  the  Green  and  Bear  Rivers  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Compa- 
ny's post,  called  Fort  Hall,  on  the  Lewis ;  and  thence,  in  separate 
parties,  to  the  Willamet  valley,  where  they  arrived  in  October.  Their 
journey,  of  more  than  two  thousand  miles,  was,  of  course,  laborious 
and  fatiguing ;  they  were  subjected  to  many  difficulties  and  priva- 
tions, and  seven  of  their  party  died  on  the  way,  from  sickness 

•  Sir  Robert  Peel's  speech  in  the  House  of  Commons,  February  5th,  1844. 
t  See  the  interesting  report  and  map  of  Lieutenant  Fremont,  published  by  order  of 
the  Senate,  in  the  spring  of  1843. 


■S;tl 


(  I 


392 


AMERICAN    EMIGRANTS   TO    OREGON. 


i^; 


'mr 


[1843. 


r 


i\ 


f* 


or  accident.*  Their  numbers  and  discipline,  however,  enabled  them 
to  set  at  defiance  the  Sioux  and  the  Blackfeet,  those  Tartars  of  the 
American  steppes,  who  could  only  gaze  from  a  distance  at  the 
crowd  of  pale-faces  leaving  the  sunny  valleys  of  the  Mississippi  for 
the  rugged  wilds  of  the  Columbia.  Upon  the  whole,  the  difficulties 
were  less  than  had  been  anticipated,  even  by  the  most  sanguine 
partisans  of  the  immediate  occupation  of  Oregon  ;  and  the  success 
of  the  expedition  encouraged  a  still  greater  number  to  follow  in 
1844,  before  the  end  of  which  year  the  number  of  American  citi- 
zens in  Oregon  exceeded  three  thousand. 

The  increase  of  the  numbers  of  American  citizens  in  Oregon  was 
noticed  by  the  president,  in  his  Message  to  Congress  of  the  5th  of 
December  following,  in  which  he  repeated  the  assurance  that  every 
proper  means  would  be  used  to  bring  the  negotiation  recently  re- 
newed with  Great  Britain  to  a  speedy  termination ;  and  he  strongly 
recommended  the  immediate  establishment  of  military  posts  at 
places  on  the  line  of  route  to  the  Columbia.  In  the  course  of  the 
session,  each  House  of  Congress  received  various  memorials,  pe- 
titions, and  resolutions,  from  State  legislatures,  all  urging  the  govern- 
ment to  adopt  measures  for  the  immediate  establishment  of  the  right 
of  the  United  States  to  the  countries  beyond  the  Rocky  Mountains ; 
and  several  bills  having  in  view  the  same  object  were  introduced 
and  debated,  though  none  of  them  were  passed  by  either  branch  of 
the  federal  legislature.  Of  these  bills,  some  were  nearly  identical 
with  that  which  had  been  passed  by  the  Senate  in  the  preceding  ses- 
sion ;  the  others  were  to  the  effect,  that  notice  should  be  immedi 
ately  given  to  the  British  government  of  the  intention  of  the  United 
States  to  terminate  the  convention  of  1827,  in  the  time  and  man- 
ner therein  provided.    The  debates  were  continued  in  both  houses, 

•  It  may  be  here  remarked,  that,  on  the  1st  of  July,  1843,  while  this  crowd  of  men, 
women,  and  children,  with  their  wagons,  horses,  and  cattle,  were  quietly  pursuing  their 
way  across  the  continent,  to  the  regions  of  the  lower  Columbia,  an  article  appeared  in  the 
Edinburgh  Review — a  journal  commonly  well  informed,  and  fair  in  its  views  on  Amer- 
ican matters  —  in  which  it  was  affirmed,  ex-cathedra,  that  —  "  However  the  politicd 
questions  between  England  and  Jlmerica,  as  to  the  ownership  of  Oregon,  may  be  decided, 
Oregon  will  never  be  colonized  overland  from  the  United  Slates."  The  Reviewer 
asserts  that  —  "  The  world  must  assume  a  new  face,  before  the  American  wagons  make 
plain  the  road  U.  the  Columbia  as  they  have  done  to  the  Ohio  ; ' '  and  he  determines  that— 
•'  Whoever,  therefore,  is  to  be  the  future  owner  of  Oregon,  its  people  will  come  from  Eu- 
rope." This  is  not  the  first  occasion,  in  which  European  predictions,  implying  doubts 
as  to  the  energy  of  American  citizens,  and  their  capacity  to  execute  what  they  have 
undertaken,  have  been  contradicted  by  facts,  so  soon  as  uttered.  The  Americim 
emigrants  reached  Oregon  by  a  road  which  nature  has  made  as  plain  as  that  from 
the  Atlantic  to  the  Ohio ;  and  no  one  will  question  their  power  to  maintain  them- 
selves there,  if  any  people  can  do  so. 


abled  them 
irtars  of  the 
ince  at  the 
ississippi  for 
e  difficulties 
>8t  sanguine 
I  the  success 
to  follow  in 
merican  citi- 

i  Oregon  was 

)f  the  5th  of 

ice  that  every 

,n  recently  re- 

id  he  strongly 

itary  posts  at 

I  course  of  the 

memorials,  pe- 

fflg  the  govern- 

ent  of  the  right 

ky  Mountains ; 

rere  introduced 

ither  branch  of 

nearly  identical 

e  preceding  ses- 

ild  be  immedi 

n  of  the  United 

time  and  man- 

m  both  houses, 

this  crowd  of  men, 
lietly  pursuing  their 
■  tide  appeared  in  the 
its  views  on  Amer- 

dotener  the  politicd 
gon,may  he  decided, 
°"  The  Reviewer 
ericantoagonsmke 
he  determines  that— 
e  wiUevme  from  Eu- 

Tons,  implying  d°"^" 
•ute  what  they  have 

■d     The  American 
^  plain  as  that  from 

sr  to  maintain  the""- 


1844.] 


DEBATES     IN     CONGRESS. 


393 


for  some  time,  embracing  not  only  all  the  questions  coimected  with 
the  claim  of  the  United  States  to  Oregon,  but  also  incidentally,  that 
respecting  the  north-eastern  boundary  of  the  Republic,which  had  been 
already  settled  by  the  treaty  of  Washington.    The  abrogation  of  the 
convention  was  defended,  as  a  legitimate  and  unexceptionable  means 
of  opening  Oregon  to  American  citizens,  from  which  they  were 
now  wholly  excluded ;  and  as  oflfering  to  those  desirous  of  emi- 
gfating  thither,  some  guarantee  of  future  protection  by  their  govern- 
ment.    It  was  opposed  chiefly  on  the  ground  that  a  negotiation 
respecting  the  rights  of  the  two  claimant  powers,  was  about  to  be 
opened,  agreeably  to  an  invitation  from  the  American  government ; 
and  that  it  would  be  impolitic  if  not  improper  and  indecorous  thus 
to  determine  what  was  declared  to  be  a  subject  for  discussion  ;  as 
the  notice  of  the  intention  to  annul  the  agreement  could  only  be 
interpreted  as  a  direct  assertion  of  absolute  right,  and  of  a  resolu- 
tion to  maintain  that  right  by  force,  if  necessary,  at  the  end  of  the 
period  prescribed.     The  advocates  of  abrogation  were  averse  to 
any  further  negotiations ;  contending  that  in  all  those  entered  into 
upon  this  subject,  the  United  States  had  suffered,  and  that  the 
British  were  only  anxious  to  gain  time,  and  thus  to  continue  the 
exclusion  of  American  citizens,  until  they  could  themselves  occupy 
the  whole  territory :  but  if  a  negotiation  should  now  be   com- 
menced it  would  end  before  the  expiration  of  the  period  stated  in 
the  notice  ;  when  either  some  new  arrangement  would  have  been 
made,  or  it  would  be  seen  that  Great  Britain  was  resolved  to  con- 
test the  claim  of  the  United  States  at  all  hazards.     On  the  other 
hand  it  was  insisted  that  the  British  could  never  occupy  the  coun- 
try ;  that  they  could  use  it  only  for  the  fur  trade,  which  was  de- 
clining rapidly,  and  must  speedily  cease ;  and  that  Oregon  would 
come  into  the  possession  of  the  Americans  by  quiet  and  silent  emi- 
gration,  as  soon  as  could   be  reasonably  desired,  if  not    sooner. 
Equally  different  were  the  anticipations  of  the  two  parties,  as  to 
the  results  of  a  war  with  Great  Britain,  if  it  should  be  occasioned 
by  the  measure  proposed  ;  the  one  holding  up  defeat,  devastation, 
destruction  of  commerce,  and  dissolution  or  dismemberment  of  the 
Union,  as  the  probable  consequences,  while  the  other  seemed  to 
entertain  no  doubt  that  it  would  lead  to  the  overthrow  of  the 
British  dominions  in  North  America. 

At  the  commencement  of  the  ensuing  session  of  Congress,  the 
President  declared,  in  his  message,  that  a  negotiation  had  been  for- 
mally begun,  and  was  pending  between  the  secretary  of  state  and 

50 


;:f||| 

1 

'""'HI 

■■'•^^i 

:,:  ,  ■  'n 

i' 

1 

1  i 

:■■ 

1  ■ 

iA 

m 


894 


NEGOTIATIONS    IN      PROGRESS. 


[1844. 


i  I 


m " 


her  Britannic  majesty's  minister  plenipotentiary,  relative  to  the  rights 
of  the  respective  nations  to  Oregon.     The  report  of  the  secretary  of 
war,  accompanying  this  message,  contained  a  recommendation,  for 
the  establishment  of  a  territorial  government  over  the  region  traversed 
by  the  river  Platte,  between  the  States  of  Missouri  and  Arkansas 
on  the  east,  and  the  Rocky  Mountains  on  the  west,  and  for  the  for- 
mation of  military  posts  on  the  line  of  route  from  those  States  to 
Oregon  and  California.     Agreeably  to  this  recommendation,  bills 
were  introduced  into  the  House  of  Representatives  for  establishing 
such  a  government  over  the  country  above  described,  which  was  to 
be  called  the  Nebraska  Territory,  and  for  extending  the  jurisdiction 
of  its  courts  over  Oregon  ;  but  they  were  not  made  the  subject  of 
debate  during  the  session.     A  bill  for  the  immediate  occupation  of 
Oregon  under  a  territorial  government,  and  for  abrogating  the  Con- 
vention of  1827,  in  the  manner  provided  by  that  agreement,  was 
however  passed  in  the  House  of  Representatives,  but  it  was  not  dis- 
cussed in  the  Senate.     With  regard  to  the  measures  last  mentioned 
nothing  will  be  here  said,  in  addition  to  what  has  already  been  ob- 
served.    The  propositions  for  establishing  a  territorial  government 
over  the  Nebraska  country,  and  for  extending  the  benefit  of  its  laws 
to  Oregon,   appear  to  have  combined  every  legislative  provision 
required  by  present  circumstances,  to  maintain  the  rights  of  the 
United  States,  and  to  ensure  protection  to  their  citizens  beyond  the 
Rocky  Mountains.    On  the  19th  of  February,  1845,  the  President 
informed  Congress,  by  a  message,  that  considerable  progress  had 
been  made  in  the  negotiation  with  Great  Britain,  which  had  been 
carried  on  in  a  very  amicable  spirit,  and  there  was  reason  to  hope 
that  it  might  be  speedily  terminated  ;  but  nothing  farther  was  com- 
municated on  the  subject  daring  that  session,  or  during  the  extra 
session  of  the  Senate  in  March. 


Tlie  history  of  the  western  section  of  North  America  has  now 
been  brought  down  to  as  late  a  period  as  the  information  obtained 
respecting  that  part  of  the  world  could  warrant.  Accounts  have 
been  presented  of  all  the  expeditions,  discoveries,  settlements,  and 
)ther  events,  worthy  record,  and  of  all  the  clainis  and  pretensions 
advanced  by  civilized  nations,  and  all  the  disputes,  negotiations,  and 
conventions  between  their  governments,  relative  to  these  territories. 

It  has  been  shown  that  the  discovery  of  the  west  coast  of  the 
continent,  certainly  as  far  nortli  as  the  49th  degree  of  latitude, 


1844.] 


GENERAL     REVIEW. 


and  probably  much  farther,  and  of  the  western  sides  of  the  west- 
ernmost  islands  flanking  that  continent,  between  the  49th  and 
56th  degrees,  is  due  entirely  to  the  Spaniards  ;  that  these  coasts 
were  subsequently  explored  more  minutely  by  the  nav^tors  of 
Great  Britain,  Spain,  and  the  United  States,  previous  to  their 
more  complete  survey  by  the  subjects  of  Great  Britain  under  Van- 
couver; after  wliich,  the  vast  territories  of  the  interior,  drained 
by  the  Columbia,  were  first  traversed  and  examined  by  the  citizens 
of  the  American  Union,  under  Lewis  and  Clarke,  in  1805-6 
With  regard  to  occupation,  it  has  been  proved  conclusively,  that  no 
establishment  whatever  was  made  by  any  civilized  people  except 
Spaniards  and  Russians,  in  any  part  of  the  western  section  of  North 
America,  until  1806,  when  the  first  British  post  west  of  the  Rodcy 
Mountains  was  founded  on  the  upper  waters  of  Frazer's  River,  neaor 
the  54th  degree  of  latitude ;  and  that  the  earliest  establishments 
in  the  countries  drained  by  the  Colunribia,  which  had  been  first 
discovered  and  first  explored  by  the  Spaniards  and  the  citizens  of 
the  United  States,  were  made  in  1809  and  the  four  succeeding 
years  by  the  people  of  the  latter  republic. 

Of  the  international  questions,  arising  from  these  discoveries  and 
settlements,  the  only  serious  one  now  remaining  undetermined  is 
that  between  the  United  States  and  Great  Britain,  involving  nothing 
less  than  the  right  of  possessing  the  vast  territories  of  the  Colum- 
bia, commonly  called  Oregon.  Concerning  this  question,  it  has 
been  shown,  that  the  United  States  asserted  their  right  against 
Great  Britain  in  1815,  as  founded  upon  the  discoveries  and  settle- 
ments of  their  citizens,  made  prior  to  any  by  the  other  party  ;  and 
that  having  obtained  by  the  Florida  treaty,  in  1819,  all  the  titles  of 
Spain  to  those  countries,  their  government  has  ever  since  claimed 
the  exclusive  sovereignty  over  them,  though  it  has  more  than  once 
offered,  for  the  sake  of  peace,  to  surrender  to  Great  Britain  all  north 
of  the  49th  parallel  of  latitude.  On  the  other  hand,  it  has  been 
shown  that  the  British  government  first  claimed  the  possession  of 
the  Columbia  regions  in  1815,  on  the  ground  of  their  having 
been  early  taken  possessi<m  of  in  the  name  of  their  sovereign,  and 
ever  since  considered  as  part  of  his  dominions ;  and  then  in  1824, 
in  virtue  of  settlements  alleged  to  have  been  made  by  British  sub- 
jects, coeval  with,  if  not  prior  to,  any  by  American  citizens ;  after 
which,  repeated  and  direct  assertions  of  positive  right,  that  power 
declared  officially  in  1826, — that  she  claimed  no  exclusive  sovereignty 
over  any  portion  of  those  territories,  limiting  her  pretensions  re- 


8 1  B^il 


!|F:.iH.!NW 


jiff 


!?•[•' 


896 


Hudson's   bay   company's   system. 


[1844. 


gpecting  them,  to  a  right  of  joint  occupancy  with  other  states, 
agreeably  to  the  Nootka  Convention  between  herself  and  Spain,  in 
1790,  and  leaving  the  right  of  sovereignty  in  abeyance.  On  the 
claim  of  Great  Britain,  thus  formally  reduced  to  specific  terms,  it 
has  been  considered  sufficient  to  show,  that,  agreeably  to  the  usages 
of  nations,  and  to  the  never-failing  practice  of  that  power,  as  main- 
tained by  her  government,  particularly  in  the  negotiation  with  the 
United  States  in  1816,  respecting  the  Newfoundland  fishery,*  the 
Nootka  Conveiitioii  expired  in  1796,  and  has  ever  since  remained  a 
dead  letter. 

The  British  government  cannot  continue  to  uphold  the  sub- 
sistence of  the  Nootka  Convention,  upon  which  all  its  claims  were 
thus  made  to  rest,  in  1827,  without  directly  impugning  its  own 
declaration  that  "  Great  Britain  knows  no  exception  to  the  rule 
that  all  treaties  are  put  an  end  to  by  a  subsequent  war  between  the 
same  parties  ;"  as  well  as  the  legality  of  its  present  occupation  of* 
the  Falkland  Islands,  from  which  the  British  are  excluded  by  that 
convention  :  nor  can  the  United  States  and  their  government 
submit  to  such  various  interpretations  of  the  same  national  law. 
From  the  negotiation  now  in  progress,  neither  the  records  of  the 
former  discussions,  nor  subsequent  events,  nor  the  present  state  of 
the  parties,  encourage  the  hope  for  any  de6nite  settlement  of  the 
questions  at  issue,  that  is  to  say,  of  the  boundaries  west  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains :  though  possibly  some  change  in  the  existing 
convention,  or  some  supplement  to  it  may  be  effected,  or  more 
probably  its  immediate  abrogation  may  be  the  consequence ;  and 
under  this  view  it  will  be  proper  to  present  some  concluding  obser- 
vations on  the  condition  of  the  countries,  and  their  inhabitants, 
subject  to  those  stipulations. 

The  countries  to  which  the  convention  of  1827  applies,  have  un- 
til a  recent  period,  been,  so  far  as  regards  the  advantages  derived 
from  them,  entirely  in  the  possession  of  Great  Britain ;  while  the 
United  States,  the  other  party  to  that  treaty,  have  only  secured  the 
continuance  of  their  title  unimpaired.  The  British  represented  first 
by  the  North- West  Company,  and  afterwards  by  the  Hudson's  Bay 
Company,  have  enjoyed  the  quiet  and  almost  exclusive  use  of  the 
Columbia  regions  from  1814  to  1840.  That  the  people  of  the  Uni- 
ted States  did  not  participate  in  these  advantages,  doubtless  arose 
principally  from  the  circumstance,  that  they  could  render  their  ex- 


*  See  page  318. 


1844.] 


Hudson's  bay  company's  treatment  or  Indians.       397 


ertions  more  productive  elsewhere  ;  and  also  probably  because  therr 
guvernment,  from  its  nature,  could  not  aiford  them  assurances  and 
facilities  for  organization,  similar  to  those  which  have  imparted  so 
much  vigor  and  efficiency  to  the  operations  of  the  British. 

The  Hudson's  Bay  Company  thus  assisted  and  protected  in  every 
way  by  its  government,  became  a  powerful  body.  The  field  for  its 
labors  was  at  once  vastly  increased  by  the  license  to  trade,  in  exclu- 
sion of  all  other  British  subjects,  in  the  countries  west  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  where  the  fur-bearing  animals  were  more  abundant  than 
in  any  other  part  of  the  world  ;  while  the  extension  of  the  jurisdic- 
tion of  the  Canada  courts  over  the  whole  division  of  the  continent, 
to  which  its  charters  apply,  and  the  appointment  of  its  own  agents 
as  magistrates,  in  those  regions,  gave  all  that  could  have  been  de- 
sired for  the  enforcement  of  its  regulations.  The  arrangement  made 
with  the  Russian  American  Company,  through  the  intervention  of 
the  two  governments,  secured  the  most  advantageous  limits  in  the 
north-west ;  and  the  position  assumed  by  Great  Britain,  in  the  dis- 
cussions with  the  United  States,  respecting  Oregon,  were  calculated 
to  increase  the  confidence  of  the  Company,  in  the  strength  of  its 
tenure  of  that  country,  and  to  encourage  greater  efforts. 

In  addition  to  the  aid  thus  derived  from  government,  the  consti- 
tution of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  is  such  as  to  secure  know- 
ledge and  prudence  in  council,  and  readiness  and  exactness  in  exe- 
cution. The  proceedings  of  its  directors,  by  whom  all  general 
orders  and  regulations  are  issued,  and  all  accounts  are  comptroUed, 
are  enveloped  as  much  as  possible,  in  secrecy ;  all  communications 
which  are  likely  to  be  published,  b  iing  expressed  in  terms  of  studied 
caution,  and  affording  only  the  details  absolutely  required.  The 
number  of  persons  in  its  employ  is  small,  considering  the  amount  of 
duties  performed  by  them  ;  the  manner  of  their  admission  into  the 
service,  the  training  to  which  they  are  subjected,  and  the  expectations 
held  out  to  them,  being  calculated  to  render  their  efficiency  and 
devotion  to  the  general  interests,  as  great  as  possible.  The  strictest 
discipline,  regularity  and  economy  are  enforced  throughout  the 
Company's  territories  ;  and  the  magistrates  appointed  under  the  act 
of  parliament,  for  the  preservation  of  tranquillity,  are  seldom  called 
to  exercise  their  powers,  except  in  the  settlement  of  trifling  dis- 
putes. 

In  the  treatment  of  the  aborigines  of  these  countries,  the  Hud- 
son's Bay  Company  appears  to  have  admirably  combined  and  recon- 
ciled policy  with  humanity.    The  prohibition  to  supply  them  with 


398      Hudson's  bay  company's  treatment  or  Indians.     [1844. 

ardent  spirits,  appears  to  be  rigidly  enforced.  Schools  for  the  in 
struction  of  their  children  are  established  at  all  the  principal  trading 
posts,  each  of  which  also  contains  a  hospital  for  sick  Indians,  and 
offers  employment  for  those  disposed  to  work,  whilst  hunting  cannot 
be  carried  on.  Missionaries  of  various  sects  are  encouraged  to  en- 
deavor to  convert  them  to  Christianity,  and  to  induce  them  to  adopt 
the  usages  of  civilized  life,  so  far  as  may  be  consistent  with  the  na- 
ture of  the  labors  required  for  their  support ;  and  attempts  are  made, 
at  great  expense,  to  collect  them  in  villages,  on  tracts  where  the 
climate  and  soil  are  most  favorable  for  agriculture.  Particular  care 
is  extended  to  the  education  of  the  half-breed  children,  the  offspring 
of  the  marriage  or  concubinage  of  the  traders  with  the  Indian 
women,  who  are  retained,  and  bred  as  far  as  possible  among  the 
white  people,  and  are  employed,  whenever  they  are  found  capable, 
in  the  service  of  the  Company.  As  there  are  few  or  no  white 
women  in  those  territories,  except  in  the  Red  River  settlements,  it 
may  be  easily  seen  that  the  half-breeds  must  in  time  form  a  large  if 
not  an  important  portion  of  the  native  population. 

The  conduct  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  in  these  respects  is 
certainly  worthy  of  commendation.  It  is  however  to  be  observed, 
that  of  the  whole  territory  placed  under  the  authority  of  that  body, 
either  by  its  charter  or  by  license,  only  a  few  small  portions  are 
capable  of  being  rendered  productive  by  agriculture :  from  the  re- 
mainder of  the  country,  nothing  of  value  in  commerce  can  be  ob- 
tained except  furs,  and  those  articles  can  be  procured  in  greater 
quantitieu  and  at  less  cost,  by  the  labor  of  the  Indians,  than  by  any 
other  means.  There  is,  consequently,  no  object  in  expelling  or 
destroying  the  natives  who  occupy  no  land  required  for  other  pur- 
poses and  can  never  be  dangerous  from  their  numbers ;  while  on 
the  contrary,  there  is  a  direct  and  evident  motive  of  interest  to  pre- 
serve and  conciliate  them,  and  the  Company  certainly  employs  the 
best  methods  to  attain  those  ends.  By  the  system  above  described, 
the  natural  shyness  and  distrust  of  the  savages  have  been  in  a  great 
measure  removed ;  the  ties  which  bound  t(^ther  the  members  of 
the  variotfs  tribes  have  been  loosened,  and  extensive  combinations 
for  any  purpose  have  become  impossible.  The  dependence  of  the 
Indians  upon  the  Company  is  at  the  same  time  rendered  entire  and 
absolute  ;  for  having  abandoned  the  use  of  all  their  former  arms, 
hunting  and  fishing  implements,  and  clothes,  they  can  no  longer 
subsist  without  the  guns,  ammunition,  fish-hooks,  blankets  and  other 
flinnlar  aitides,  which  they  receive  only  from  the  Irtish  traders. 


1844.]     hcixsom's  bat  company's  treatment  or  americani.      899 

The  position  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  towards  these  people, 
is  thus  wholly  diflferent  from  that  of  the  East  India  Company,  with 
respect  to  the  Chinese;  the  motives  of  the  former  body  to  prohibit 
the  introduction  of  spirits  among  '  Indians,  being  no  less  strong 
than  those  of  the  latter,  to  favor  the  consumption  of  opium  in 
China. 

The  course  observed  by  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  towards 
American  citizens,  in  the  territory  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
has  been  equally  unexceptionable,  and  yet  equally  politic.  All  the 
missionaries  and  emigrants  from  the  United  States,  and  indeed  all 
strangers  from  whatsoever  country  they  might  come,  have  been  re- 
ceived at  the  establishments  of  the  company  on  the  Columbia  with 
the  utmost  kindness  and  hospitality,  and  aided  in  the  prosecution  of 
their  objects,  so  far  and  so  long  as  those  objects  were  not  commer- 
cial. But  no  sooner  did  any  one  unconnected  with  the  Company, 
attempt  to  hunt,  or  trap,  or  to  trade  with  the  natives,  than  all  the 
force  of  the  body  was  immediately  turned  towards  him.  There  is 
no  evidence  or  well-founded  suspicion,  that  violent  means  have  ever 
been  employed  by  the  company,  directly  or  indirectly,  to  defeat  the 
efforts  of  its  rivals.  Many  American  citizens  have  Ix  en  murdered 
by  the  Indians  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains  ;  but  many  more  ser- 
vants of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  have  suffered  in  the  same  way. 
Indeed,  violent  means  would  have  been  unnecessary  on  the  part  of 
the  Company,  whilst  it  enjoyed  advantages  so  great  over  all  other 
competitors  in  trade,  by  its  organization,  its  wealth,  and  the  know- 
ledge of  the  country  possessed  by  its  agents.  Wherever  an  Ameri- 
can port  has  been  established,  or  an  American  party  has  been  en- 
gaged in  trading  on  the  Columbia,  an  agent  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  has 
soon  appeared  in  the  same  quarter,  at  the  head  of  a  number  of  ex- 
perienced hunters,  or  with  a  large  amount  of  specie  or  merchandise 
on  hand,  to  be  given  to  the  Indians  foi  furs,  on  terms  much  lower 
than  the  Americans  could  offer ;  and  the  latter,  thus  finding  their 
labors  vain,  were  soon  obliged  to  retire  from  the  field.  Even  with- 
out employing  these  extraordinary  and  expensive  means,  the  British 
traders,  receiving  their  goods  in  the  Columbia  by  sea  from  London, 
free  from  duty,  can  always  undersell  the  Americans,  who  must 
transport  their  merchandise  more  than  two  thousand  miles  over 
land,  from  the  frontiers  of  the  United  States,  where  many  of  the 
articles  best  adapted  for  the  trade  have  previously  been  subjected  to 
import  duties.  In  pursuance  of  the  same  system,  the  Company  en- 
deavors, and  generally  with  success,  to  prevent  the  vessels  of  the 


ii'  ■: 


400     Hudson's  bay  company's  treatment  of  Americans.      [1844. 

United  States  from  obtaining  cargoes  on  the  north-west  coasts  of 
America ;  though  the  mariners  of  all  nations,  when  thrown  upon 
these  coasts  by  shipwreck  or  by  other  misfortunes,  have  uniformly 
received  shelter  and  protection,  at  its  posts  and  factories.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  publications  made  by  the  directors  and  agents  of 
the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  evince  the  most  hostile  feelings  towards 
the  citizens  of  Ihe  United  States,  against  whom  every  species  of 
calumny  is  levelled  in  those  works,  whilst,  at  the  same  time,  all  their 
efforts  to  establish  themselves  in  Oregon  are  derided.* 

Under  these  circumstances,  the  fur  trade  has,  until  recently,  been 
very  profitable  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  ;  but  it  is  now  cer- 
tainly declining  in  every  part  of  North  America,  from  the  diminu- 
tion of  the  number  of  the  animals,  whilst  the  price  of  furs  does  not 
increase,  in  consequence  of  the  advantageous  employment  of  silk, 
cotton,  and  wool  in  their  place,  particularly  in  China.  The  Hud- 
son's Bay  Company  endeavors  to  prevent  this  decrease  of  the  ani- 
mals in  the  countries  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  by  withdrawing 
its  hunters  and  traders  from  certain  districts  in  succession,  during  a 
number  of  years ;  but  in  the  Columbia  countries,  where  its  control 
is  not  exclusive,  and  its  tenure  of  the  soil  is  insecure,  no  precautions 
of  this  kind  are  observed,  and  many  of  its  posts  have  therefore  been 
reduced  or  abandoned. 

As  he  fur  trade  in  the  Columbia  regions  declined,  the  Hudson's 
Bay  Company  began  to  turn  its  attention  to  agriculture,  pasturage, 
cutting  timber,  6shing,  and  other  pursuits,  for  which  persons  were 
introduced  from  Canada  or  from  Europe,  and  extensive  establish- 
ments have  been  formed  in  several  places.  From  the  use  or  ex- 
portation of  these  products,  some  revenue  is  saved  or  gained,  but  it 
is  evident  that  capital  thus  invested  can  yield  but  slender  returns,  and 
no  other  modes  for  its  employment  are  offered  at  present  in  Oregon, 
or  further  north.     Those  countries,  indeed,  contain  lands  in  de- 

*  See  History  of  the  Oregon  Territory  and  British  American  Fur  Trade,  by  John 
Dunn,  8vo.  London,  1844,  a  compound  of  ridiculous  blunders,  vulgar  ribaldry,  and 
infamous  calumnies,  against  the  United  States  and  their  citizens.  In  blind  and  fe- 
rocious hatred  of  the  Americans,  Mr.  Dunn,  ex-storekeeper  at  Fort  Vancouver,  may 
indeed  claim  equality  with  His  Exc'y  Charles  Powlett  Thompson,  Lord  Sydenham, 
some  time  President  of  the  Board  of  Trade  of  Great  Britain,  and  subsequently 
Governor  and  Captain-Genera'  of  Canada.  See  the  memoirs  and  letters  of  this 
latter  worthy,  published  by  his  brother,  and  also  the  admirable  remarks  on  that 
work  by  Lord  Brougham,  in  his  Historical  Sketches  of  the  Statesmen  of  the  time  of 
George  IIL  It  will  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  letters  containing  these  libels  were 
addressed  by  Lord  Sydenham  to  the  British  ministers,  his  former  colleagues  in 
office ;  and  that  they  are  published  by  his  attached  relative  as  evidences  of  his 
character,  and  as  claims  to  the  admiration  of  his  countrymen. 


Ml 


1844.] 


UKI}    RIVCH    SETTLEMBN'r. 


401 


inched  portions,  which  may  afford  to  the  industriout  cultivator  the 
meani  of  subsist  3nce,  and  also,  in  time,  of  procuring  some  foreign 
luxur'res ;  but  they  produce  no  precious  metals,  no  cotton,  no  coffee, 
no  rice,  no  sugar,  no  opium  ;  nor  are  they,  like  India,  inhabited  by 
a  numerous  population,  who  may  be  easily  forced  to  labor  for  the 
benefit  of  a  few. 

With  regard  to  colonization  ^-^  it  has  been  already  said  that  a  very 
small  proportion  of  the  territories  belonging  to,  or  held  under  license 
by  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  is  capable  of  being  rendered  produc-> 
tive  by  cultivation.  The  only  place  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  in 
which  attempts  have  been  made  to  found  permanent  agricultural 
settlements,  is  on  the  Red  River,  between  the  49th  parallel  of  lati- 
tude, there  forming  the  northern  boundary  of  the  United  States, 
and  Lake  Winnipeg,  into  which  that  river  empties.  Of  the  cession 
of  this  country  by  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  to  Lord  Selkirk,  and 
the  unfortunate  results  of  his  first  efforts  to  colonize  it,  accounts 
have  been  already  given.  New  efforts,  with  the  same  object,  but 
with  no  better  results,  were  afterwards  made  by  the  son  and  sue- 
oessor  of  that  nobleman ;  and  the  territory  was  at  length,  in  1836, 
retro-ceded  to  the  Company,  which  has,  with  much  difficulty  and 
expense,  established  on  it  about  six  thousand  persons,  nearly  all  of 
them  Indians  and  half-breeds,  under  what  conditions  as  to  tenure  of 
the  soil,  is  not  known.'**    The  land  produces  wheat,  rye,  potatoes, 


*  Mr.  Pelly,  the  governor  of  the  Hodson's  Bay  Company,  in  a  letter  addressed 
on  the  10th  of  February,  1837,  to  Lord  Glenelg,  the  British  secretary  for  the  colo- 
nies, says,  "This  rising  community,  if  well  governed,  may  be  found  useful  at 
aome  future  period,  in  the  event  of  difficulties  occurring  between  Great  Britain  and 
the  United  States  of  America,  who  have  several  military  posts,  say  those  of  the 
Ssnlt  Saint  Mary,  Prairie  du  Chien,  and  the  River  Saint  Peter's,  established  on 
tbeir  Indian  frontiers,  along  the  line  of  boundary  with  British  North  America."  On 
the  other  band,  Mr.  Thomas  Simpson,  an  officer  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  in 
his  interesting  account  of  the  discoveries  effected  by  himself  and  his  cotnpanion, 
Dease,  in  1838  and  1839,  states  that  the  settlers  on  the  Red  River. have  "  found 
out  the  only  practicable  outlet  for  their  cattle  and  grain,  in  the  fine  level  plains 
leading  to  the  Mississippi  and  the  St.  Peter's,  where  there  is  a  promise  of  a 
lufficient  market  among  the  Americans,"  particularly  as  "  the  bnlky  nature  of  the 
exports,  a  long  and  dangerous  navigation  to  Hudson's  Bay,  and  above  all,  the 
loving  and  indolent  habits  of  the  half-breed  race,  who  form  the  mass  of  the  po- 
pulation, and  love  the  chase  of  the  buffalo  better  than  the  drudgery  of  agriculture, 
or  regular  industry,  seem  to  preclude  the  possibility  of  this  colony  rising  to  im- 
portance."  He  moreover  adds,  that  the  Scotch,  who  compose  a  small,  but  the 
only  useful  portion  of  the  community,  carefully  avoid  all  amalgamation  with  the 
others  j  in  order  to  prevent  which,  they  generally  retire  to  the  United  States,  so 
Kon  as  they  have  by  industry  and  economy  accumulated  a  moderate  amount  of 
property.  "There  being  fortunately  no  prospect  of  "  difficulties  occurring  between 
Great  Britain  and  the  United  States,"  we  may  hope  that  the  little  colony  on  the  Red 
River,  will  flourish,  and  profit  by  its  vicinity  to  the  great  state  of  Iowa. 

51 


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i  an 


403 


AMERICAN     CITIZENS     IN    OREGON. 


[1844. 


hemp,  flax,  and  some  other  vegetables,  and  grass  for  cattle,  tolerably 
well,  and  it  may  be  considered  fertile  when  compared  with  other 
parts  of  the  continent  situated  so  far  north :  it  is,  however,  deficient 
in  wood,  and  notwithstanding  all  the  advantages  held  out  to  the 
inhabitants,  there  is  no  prospect  that  it  will  ever  become  profitable 
or  useful,  either  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  or  to  the  British 
government,  in  any  way ;  and  least  of  all,  "  in  the  event  of  diffi- 
culties occurring  between  Grelit  Britain  and  the  United  States  of 
America,"  to  provide  for  which  seems  to  be  one  of  the  objects  of  the 
Company  in  fostering  it. 

There  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  the  British  government  has 
made  grants  of  any  nature  in  the  countries  west  of  the  Rocky 
Mountains,  except  that  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  which  is 
merely  a  license  to  use  those  countries,  in  common  with  American 
citizens.  The  cornpany  has  however  allowed  many  settlements  to 
be  formed  by  its  retired  servants ;  and  has  also  encouraged  associ- 
ations of  British  subjects,  its  own  servants  and  others,  to  make  es- 
tablishments for  farming  and  grazing  on  a  large  scale.  The  earliest 
of  these  establishments  were  in  the  valley  of  the  Willamet,  south 
of  the  Columbia,  where  the  British  were  soon  outnumbered  by  the 
Americans,  and  now  compose  a  very  inconsiderable  part  of  the 
population.  The  larger  establishments,  besides  those  at  Fort  Van- 
couver, are  situated  in  the  prairies  about  Bulfinch'«  Harbor,  and 
around  Nasqually,  one  of  the  Company's  posts  at  the  southern 
extremity  of  Puget's  Sound,  and  near  the  head  waters  of  the  Cow- 
elitz  River,  midway  between  Nasqually  and  Vancouver.  On  what 
terms  these  establishments  have  been  founded  is  not  publicly 
known ;  it  may  however  be  supposed  that  they  would  not  have 
been  undertaken  without  some  assurance  from  the  British  Govern- 
ment, that  the  persons  interested  would  be  maintained  and  pro> 
tected,  or  in  any  event  be  indemnified  for  their  expenses  and  labors. 

Of  the  American  citizens  in  Oregon  very  little  can  be  said  as  yet. 
They  are  all  engaged  in  agriculture  and  other  matters  immediately 
connected  with  that  branch  of  industry ;  and  according  to  the  most 
recent  accounts,  have  estabUshed  for  themselves  a  provisional  system 
of  government,  according  to  the  constitution  of  their  native  republic. 
With  their  neighbors  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  they  seem  to 
live  on  good  terms,  and  will  probably  so  continue  as  long  as  the 
Columbia  River  separates  the  territories  occupied  by  the  two  parties. 
The  Americans  will  have  no  objection  to  settlers  from  any  quarter : 
but  it  may  be  doubted  whether  their  attempts  to  extend  their  estab- 


1846.] 


AMRRIOAN     CITIZRNS     IN    CALirORIfU. 


4M 


lithmenti  and  laws  to  the  country  north  of  that  river  will  be 
quietly  borne  by  the  British ;  and  it  is  scarcely  possible  that  the 
two  populations  should  remain  at  peace  much  longer,  without  some 
change  in  the  relations  of  their  governments,  with  regard  to  that 
part  of  the  world. 

In  California,  the  number 'of  Americans  is  large  and  is  daily  in- 
creasing, particularly  in  the  region  north  of  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco, 
formerly  occupied  by  the  Russians,  who,  in  1841,  ceded  all  their 
property  and  claims  to  a  company  composed  chiefly  of  citizens  of 
the  United  States.  The  Americans  seem  to  live  on  very  good  terms 
with  the  Mexicans,  and  to  give  themselves  little  concern  about  the 
government,  of  the  unfriendly  feelings  of  which  towards  them,  they 
are  occasionally  reminded,  by  a  decree  for  their  expulsion.  These 
decrees,  the  Governor  of  the  Territory  contents  himself  with  pro- 
claiming, as  it  would  be  madness  in  him  to  attempt  to  enforce  them, 
whilst  he  is  obliged  to  depend  almost  entirely  on  the  Americans,  to 
suppress  the  incursions  of  the  surrounding  Indians.  When  it  is  also 
remembered,  that  Monterey  is  as  far  from  the  capital,  and  centre  of  ef- 
fective power  in  Mexico  as  Washington,  it  appears  very  improbable, 
if  not  impossible,  that  California  should  long  remain  in  the  hands  of 
its  present  owners.  Oflers  have  more  than  once  been  made  by  the 
United  States  to  purchase  it,  at  prices  which  may  be  termed  liberal ; 
but  they  have  been  always  rejected  by  Mexico  ;  and  similar  propo- 
sitions have,  it  is  said,  been  presented  on  the  part  of  Great  Britain. 
That  the  United  States  will  quietly  submit  to  the  transfer  of  this 
territory  to  any  other  power,  ts  not  to  be  expected  ;  and  the  Mexi- 
can government  should  ba  well  assured  of  support,  before  it  ventures 
to  consummate^such  an  »ct. 

On  reviewing  dispusicNrrately  the  agricultural,  commercial,  and 
other  economical  advantages  of  Oregon,  there  appears  to  be  no 
reason  founded  on  such  considerations,  which  should  render  either 
of  the  powers  claiming  the  possession  of  that  country  anxious  to 
occupy  it  immediately,  or  unwilling  to  cede  its  own  pretensions  to 
others  for  a  moderate  compensation.  But  political  considerations, 
among  which  are  always  to  be  reckoned  not  only  those  proceeding 
from  just,  patriotic,  and  philanthropic  views,  but  also  those  which 
are  the  offspring  of  national  and  individual  ambition,  jealousy  and 
hatred,  ever  have  proved,  and  doubtless  will  in  this  case  prove  par- 
amount to  the  others.  It  is  the  unobjectionable,  and  indeed  im- 
perative policy  of  the  United  States,  to  secure  the  possession  of 
those  territories,  in  order  to  provide  places  of  resort  and  refresh- 


mi 


I  a 


'i        N 


11 'M 


V 


h,  S  ■■.  i 


ill 'I 


:; 

"  n  '* 

Jm 

■    1 

:B|; 

m 

;Br/ 

J| 

Jm 

!| 

404 


CONCLUSION. 


[1845. 


it 


I  I 


•1 


ment  for  their  numerous  vessels,  engaged  in  the  trade  and  fishery 
o^  the  Pacific,  particularly  as  there  is  a  prospect  that  they  may  in 
time  be  .excluded  from  the  Sandwich  Islands ;  and  also  to  prevent 
those  territories  from  falling  into  Uie  hands  of  any  other  power, 
which  might  direct  against  their  western  frontiers  the  hordes  of 
Indians  roving  through  the  middle  and  westernmost  divisions  of  the 
continents.  Great  Britain,  on  the  other  hand,  can  have  no  motive 
for  qpposing  the  occupation  of  Oregon  by  the  United  States,  except 
that  of  checking  their  advancement,  by  excluding  their  vessels  from 
the  Pacific,  and  by  maintaining  an  influence  deleterious  to  theu* 
interests  and  safety,  over  the  savages  in  their  vicinity. 

Great  Britain,  at  present,  possesses  the  advantage,  as  regards  the 
forcible  and  temporary  occupation  both  of  Oregon  and  California, 
where  a  few  ships  of  war  stationed  in  the  Bay  of  San  Francisco, 
the  Columbia,  and  Puget's  Sound,  might  doubtless  control  the  Amer- 
ican settlements,  all  necessarily  situated  in  the  vicinity  of  the 
coast,  and  receiving  nearly  all  their  supplies  of  foreign  articles  by 
sea.  But  that  she  should,  within  any  period  which  it  is  now  pos- 
sible to  foresee,  furnish  a  population  to  the  regions  in  question, 
there  are  cert&inly  no  grounds  for  supposing.  Her  provinces  in 
America  have  no  redundance  of  inhabitants  ;  and  what  induce- 
ments can  be  offered  in  good  faith  to  her  subjects  in  Europe,  for 
undertaking  a  voyage  of  six  months  to  the  Columbia,  or  a  voyage  to 
Canada  and  a  sulraequent  journey  of  four  thousand  miles  through 
her  wild  and  frozen  Indian  territories,  so  long  as  the  West  Indies, 
Southern  Africa,  Australia,  New  Zealand,  and,  lastly  —  the  United 
States  ■'^  are  open  to  them  ?  The  difficulties  experienced  by 
American  citizens,  in  their  passage  to  Oregon,  along  the  valleys  of 
the  Platte  and  the  Lewis,  great  though  they  may  be  at  present,  sink 
into  insignificance,  when  compared  with  those  which  British  sub- 
jects must  encounter,  in  proceeding  to  that  country,  by  either  of  the 
routes  above  indicated  :  and  the  contrast  becomes  still  stronger, 
when  we  compare  the  chamcter  and  habits  of  Americans,  trained 
from  their  childhood  to  struggle  and  provide  against  the  hardships 
and  privations  incident  to  the  settlement  of  a  new  country,  with 
those  of  Europeans,  accustomed  only  to  a  routine  of  labor  the  most 
simple,  and  the  least  calculated  to  nourish  energies  or  to  stimulate 
invention.    • 


END   OF  THE    HISTORY. 


PROOFS  AND  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


h   ii 


'  ;i!l 


PllOOrS  AND  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


!  I 


A. 


Original  Accocnt  or  the  Votaoe  or  the  Greek  Pilot  Juaji 
DE  FucA  along  the  North-West  Coasts  or  America,  in 
1592. 

A  Note  made  hy  me,  Michael  Lock  the  elder,  touching  the  Strait  of  Sea 
commonly  called  Fretum  Anian,  tn  the  South  Sea,  through  the  Nortiv-. 
West  Passage  of  Meta  Incognita.* 

When  "^  '"^^  at  Venice,  in  April,  1596,  haply  arrived  there  an 
old  man,  :  .  ixty  years  of  age,  called,  commonly,  Juan  de  Fuca,  but 

named  pr<  ' '  jpostolos  Valerianus,  of  nation  a  Greek,  born  in  Cephas 
Ionia,  of  profession  a  mariner,  and  an  ancient  pilot  of  ships.  This  man, 
being  come  lately  out  of  Spain,  arrived  first  at  Leghorn,  and  went  thence 
to  Florence,  where  he  found  one  John  Douglas,  an  Englishman,  a  famous 
mariner,  ready  coming  for  Venice,  to  be  pilot  of  a  Venetian  ship  for 
England,  in  whose  company  they  came  both  together  to  Venice.  And 
John  Douglas  being  acquainted  with  me  before,  he  gave  me  knowledge 
of  this  Greek  pilot,  and  brought  him  to  my  speech ;  and,  in  long  talks 
and  conference  between  us,  in  presence  of  John  Douglas,  this  Greek 
pilot  declared^  in  the  Italian  and  Spanish  languages,  thus  much  in  effect 
as  followeth :  — 

First,  he  said  that  he  had  been  in  the  West  Indies  of  Spain  forty 
years,  and  had  sailed  to  and  from  many  places  thereof,  in  the  service  of 
the  Spaniards. 

Also,  he  said  that  he  was  in  the  Spanish  ship  which,  in  returning 
from  the  Islands  Philippinas,  towards  Nova  Spania,  was  robbed  and 
taken  at  the  Cape  California  by  Captain  Candish,  Englishman,  whereby 
he  lost  sixty  thousand  ducats  of  his  own  goo'ds. 

Also,  he  said  that  he  was  pilot  of  three  small  ships  which  the  viceroy 
of  Mexico  sent  from  Mexico,  armed  with  one  hundred  men,  under  a  cap- 
tain, Spaniards,  to  discover  the  Straits  of  Anion,  along  the  coast  of  the 
South  Sea,  and  to  fortify  in  that  strait,  to  resist  the  passage  and  proceed- 
ings of  the  English  nation,  which  were  feared  to  pass  through  those 

*  Extracted  from  the  Ftlgrimi  of  Samuel  Furchas,  vol.  iii.  p.  849.  The  orthoera- 
phy  of  the  English  ia  modernized.  The  letters  inserted  are,  however,  given  in  their 
original  lingua  Franca.    See  p.  87  of  the  History. 


t- 1 


408 


PROOrS   AND   ILLUSTRATIOIfS. 


[A. 


■'.'■ 


,';. 


■traits  into  the  SouiS  Sea ;  and  timt,  by  reason  of  a  mutiny  which  hap* 
pcned  among  the  soldiers  for  the  misconduct  of  their  captain,  that  voyage 
was  overthrown,  md  the  ship  returned  from  California  to  Nova  Spania, 
without  any  thing  done  in  that  voyage ;  and  that,  after  th^ir  return,  the 
captain  was  at  Mexico  punished  by  justice. 

Also,  he  said  that,  shortly  after  the  said  voyage  was  so  ill  ended,  the 
said  viceroy  of  Mexico  sent  him  out  again,  in  1592,  with  a  small  caravel 
and  1  pinnace,  armed  with  mariners  only,  to  follow  the  said  voyag«^  for 
the  r''  rovery  of  the  Straits  of  Anion,  and  the  passage  thereof  into  the 
sea, '  ..ich  they  call  the  North  Sea,  which  is  our  north-west  sea ;  and  that 
he  fcJibwed  his  course,  in  that  voyage,  west  and  north-west  in  the  South 
Sea,  all  along  the  coast  of  Nova  Spania,  and  California,  and  the  Ltdies, 
now  called  North  Americt:  (all  which  voyage  he  signified  to  me  in  a  great 
map,  and  a  sea  card  of  mine  own,  which  I  laid  before  him,)  until  he  came 
tc  the  latitude  of  47  degrees ;  and  that,  there  finding  that  tne  land  ..ended 
Qorth  and  north-east,  with  a  broad  inlet  of  sea,  between  47  and  48  degrees 
of  latitude,  he  entered  thereinto,  sailing  therein  more  than  twenty  days. 
and  found  that  land  (rendin^  "till  sometime  north-west,  and  north-east,  and 
north,  and  also  east  hnd  south-eastward,  and  very  much  broader  sea  than 
was  at  the  said  entrance,  and  that  he  passed  by  divers  islands  in  that  sail- 
ing ;  and  that,  at  the  entranbe  of  this  said  strait,  there  is,  on  the  north- 
west coast  thereof,  a  great  headland  or  island,  with  an  exceeding  high 
pinnacle,  or  spired  rock,  like  a  pillar,  theisupon. 

Also,  he  said  that  he  went  on  land  in  divers  places,  and  that  he  saw 
sonie  people  on  land  clad  in  beasts'  skins ;  and  that  the  land  is  very  fruit* 
ful,  and  rich  of  gold,  silver,  pearls,  and  other  things,  like  Nova  Spania. 

And  also,  he  said  that  he  being  entered  thus  far  into  the  said  strait, 
and  being  come  into  the  North  Sea  already,  and  finding  the  sea  wide 
enough  every  where,  and  to  be  about  thirty  or  forty  leagues  wide  m  the 
mouth  of  the  straits  where  he  entered,  he  thought  he  had  now  well  dis- 
charged his  office ;  and  that,  not  being  armed  to  resist  the  force  of  the 
savage  people  that  might  happen,  he  therefore  set  sail,  and  return<>d  home- 
wards again  towards  Nova  Spania,  where  he  arrived  at  Acapulco,  anno 
1592,  hoping  to  be  rewarded  by  the  viceroy  for  this  service  done  in  the 
said  voyage. 

Also,  he  said  that,  after  coming  to  Mexico,  he  was  greatly  welcomed 
by  the  viceroy,  and  had  promises  of  great  reward;  but  that,  having  sued 
there  two  years,  and  obtained  nothing  to  his  content,  the  viceroy  told  him 
that  he  should  be  rewarded  in  Spain,  of  the  king  himself,  very  greatly, 
and  willed  him,  therefore,  to  go  to  Spain,  which  voyage  he  did  perform. 

Also,  he  said  that,  when  he  was  come  into  Spain,  he  was  welcomed 
there  at  the  king's  court ;  but,  after  long  suit  there,  also,  he  couid  not  get 
any  reward  there  to  his  content ;  and  therefore,  at  length,  he  stole  away 
out  of  Spain,  and  came  into  Italy,  to  go  home  again  and  live  among  his 
own  kindred  and  countrymen,  he  being  very  old. 

Also,  he  said  that  he  thought  the  cause  of  his  ill  reward  had  of  the 
Spaniards,  to  be  for  that  they  did  understand  very  well  that  the  English 
nation  had  now  given  over  all  their  voyages  for  discovery  of  the  north- 
west passage ;  wherefore  they  need  not  fear  them  any  more  to  come  that 
way  into  the  South  Sea,  and  .herefore  they  needed  not  his  service  therein 
any  more. 

Also,  he  said  that,  understanding  the  noble  mind  of  the  queen  of 


'■'til'    ! 


A.] 


PROOFS    AND   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


409 


Eagland,  and  of  her  wars  against  the  Spaniards,  and  hoping  that  her 
majesty  would  do  him  justice  for  his  goods  lost  by  Captain  Candisli,  he 
would  be  content  to  go  into  England,  »nd  serve  her  majesty  in  that  yoyage 
for  the  discovery  perfectly  of  the. north-west  passage  intor.he  South  Sta, 
if  she  would  furnish  him  with  only  one  ship  of  forty  tons'  burden,  and  a 
pinnace,  and  that  he  would  perform  it  in  thirty  days'  time,  from  one  end 
to  the  other  of  the  strait ;  and  he  willet'  me  so  to  write  to  England. 

And,  upon  conference  had  twice  with  the  said  Greek  pilot,  I  did  write 
thereof,  accordingly,  to  England,  unto  the  right  honorable  the  old  Lord 
Treasurer  Cecil,  and  to  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  and  to  Master  Richard  Hak- 
luyt,  that  famous  cosmographer,  certifying  them  hereof.  And  I  prayed 
them  to  disburse  one  hundred  pounds,  to  bring  the  said  Greek  pilot  into 
England  with  myself,  for  that  my  own  purse  would  not  stretch  so  wide  at 
that  time.  And  I  had  answer  that  this  action  was  well  liked  and  greatly 
desired  in  England ;  but  the  money  was  not  ready,  and  therefore  this 
action  died  at  that  time,  though  the  said  Greek  pilot,  perchance,  liveth 
still  in  his  own  country,  in  Cephahnia,  towards  which  place  he  went 
within  a  fortnight  after  this  conference  had  at  Venice. 

And,  in  the  mean  time,  while  I  followed  my  own  business  in  Fentce, 
being  in  a  lawsuit  against  the  Company  of  Merchants  of  Turkey,  to  re- 
cover my  pension  due  for  being  their  consul  at  Aleppo,  which  they  held 
from  me  wrongfully,  and  when  I  was  in  readiness  to  return  to  England, 
I  thought  I  should  be  able  of  my  own  purse  to  take  with  me  the  said 
Greek  pilot ;  and  therefore  I  wrote  unto  him  from  Venice  a  letter,  dated 
July,  1596,  which  is  copied  here  under :  — 

*  "  Al  Mag~-  Sig"'  Capitan  Juan  de  Fuca,  Piloto  de  India,  amigo  mio 

char"™'  en  Zefalonia. 

"  MuY  HoNRADO  SeNNOR,  » 

"  Siendo  yo  para  buelverme  en  Inglatierra  dentre  de  pocas 
mezes,  y  accuerdandome  de  lo  trattado  entre  my  y  V.  M.  en  Venesia 
sobre  el  viagio  de  las  Indias,  me  ha  parescido  bien  de  scrivir  esta  carta 
a  V.  M.  para  q'le  se  tengais  animo  de  andar  con  migo,  puedais  p/Mtibixme 
presto  en  que  maniera  querela  consertaros.  Y  puedais  embiarmi  vuestra 
cnrta  con  esia  nao  Ingles,  que  sta  al  Zante  (sino  1  allais  otra  coiuntura 
rocior)  con  el  sobrescritto  que  diga  en  casa  del  Sennor  Eleazar  Hyc- 
man,  mercader  Ingles,  al  tragetto  de  San  Tomas  en  Venisia.  Y  Dios 
guarde  la  persona  de  V.  M.  Fecha  en  Venesia  al  orimer  dia  de  Julio, 
1596  annos. 


"  Amigo  de  V.  M., 


''Michael  Lock,  Ingles.' 


*  To  the  Magnificent  Captain  Juan  de  Fuca,  Pilot  of  the  Indies,  my  moat  dear  friend 

in  Cephalonia. 
Most  Houored  Sir, 

Being  about  to  retnra  to  England  in  a  few  months,  and  recollecting  what 

Suaed  between  you  and  myself,  at  Venice,  respecting  the  voyage  to  the  Indies,  I 
are  thought  proper  to  write  you  this  letter,  so  that,  ii  you  have  a  mind  to  go  with 
me,  you  can  write  me  word  directly  how  you  wish  to  arrange.  You  may  send  me  your 
letter  by  this  English  vessel,  which  is  at  Zante,  (if  you  should  find  no  better  op- 
portunity,) directed  to  the  care  of  Mr.  Eleazer  Hyckman,  an  English  merchant,  St. 
Thomas  Street,  Venice.    God  preserve  you,  sir. 

Your  friend, 

MicHAXL  Lock,  of  England. 
Vehioe,  July  1st,  1596.       52 


H\t. 


['■  n 


I    ^! 


iM 


It 


::'p 


410 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


lA. 


;  sf'  I 


And  I  sent  the  said  letter  from  Venice  to  Zante  in  the  ship  Cherubin ; 
and,  shortly  after,  I  sent  a  copy  thereof  in  the  ship  Minion,  and  also  a 
third  copy  thereof  by  Manea  Orlando,  patron  de  nave  Venetian.  And  unto 
my  said  letters  he  wrote  me  answer  to  Venice  by  one  letter^  which  came 
not  to  my  hands,  and  also  by  another  letter,  which  came  to  my  hands, 
waich  is  copied  here  under :  — 

*'  **  Al  111"^  Sig"-  Michael  Lock,  Ingles,  in  casa  del  Sig"*  Lasaro,  mercft* 
der  Ingles,  al  tragetto  de  San  Tomas  en  Venesia. 

"Mcr         OSTRB  Sio'"', 

"  ^ia  carta  de  V.  M.  recevi  a  20  dias  del  mese  di  Settembre, 
por  loqual  veo  loche  V.  M.  me  manda.  lo  tengho  animo  de  complir  loche 
tengo  promettido  a  V.  M.  y  no  solo  yo,  mas  tengo  vinte  hombres  para 
lievar  con  raigo,  porche  son  hombres  vaglientes;  y  assi  estoi  esperando 
por  otra  carta  che  avise  k  V.  M.  parache  me  embiais  los  dinieros  che  tengo 
escritto  a  V.  M.  Porche  bien  save  V.  M.  como  io  vine  pover,  porque  me 
glievo  Captain  Candis  mas  de  sessenta  mille  ducados,  como  V.  M.  bien 
save;  embiandome  lo  dicho,  ire  a  servir  a  V.  M.  con  todos  mis  com- 
pagneros.  I  no  spero  otra  cosa  mas  de  la  voluntad  e  carta  de  V.  M.  con 
tanto  nostro  Sig°'-  Dios  guarda  la  illustre  persona  de  V.  M.  muchos  annos. 
De  Ceffalonia  "  24  de  Settembre  del  1596. 

"  Amigo  y  servitor  de  V.  M., 

"Juan  FuSa." 

And  the  said  letter  came  into  my  hands  in  Venice,  the  16th  day  of 
November,  1596 ;  but  my  lawsuit  with  the  Company  of  Turkey  was  not 
ended,  by  reason  of  Sir  John  Spenser's  suit,  made  in  England,  at  the 
queen's  court,  to  the  contrary,  seeking  only  to  have  his  money  discharged 
which  I  had  attached  in  Venice  for  my  said  pension,  and  thereby  my  own 
purse  was  not  yet  ready  for  the  Greek  pilot. 

And,  nevertheless,  hoping  that  my  said  suit  would  have  shortly  a  good 
end,  I  wrote  another  letter  to  this  Greek  pilot  from  Venice,  dated  the  20th 
of  November,  1596,  which  came  not  to  his  hands,  and  also  another  lei.er, 
dated  the  24th  of  January,  1596,  which  came  to  his  hands.  And  thereof 
he  wrote  me  answer,  dated  the  28th  of  May,  1597,  which  I  received  the 
Ist  of  August,  1597,  by  Thomas  Norden,  an  English  merchant,  yet  living 
in  London,  wherein  he  promised  still  to  go  with  me  unto  England,  to 
perform  the  said  voyage  for  discovery  of  the  north-west  passage  into  the 
South  Sea,  if  1 1      Id  send  him  money  for  his  charges,  according  to  his 


*  To  the  Illustrious  Michael  Lock,  Enelisihman,  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Lazaro,  English 
merchant,  in  St.  Thomas  Street,  Venice. 

Most  Illustrious  Sir, 

\our  letter  was  received  by  me  on  the  20th  of  September,  by  which  I 
am  informed  of  what  you  connnuiiicate.  I  have  a  mind  to  comply  with  my  promise 
to  you,  and  have  not  only  myself,  but  twenty  men,  brave  men,  too,  whom  I  can 
carry  with  me ;  bo  I  am  waiting  for  an  answer  to  another  letter  which  I  wrote  you, 
about  the  money  which  I  asked  you  to  send  me.  For  you  know  well,  sir,  how  I  be- 
came poor  in  consequence  of  Captain  Caudish's  having  taken  from  me  more  than 
sixty  thousand  ducats,  as  you  well  know.  If  you  will  send  me  what  1  asked,  I  will 
go  with  you,  as  well  as  all  my  companions.  I  ask  no  more  from  your  kindness,  u 
shown  by  your  letter.    God  preserve  you,  most  illustrious  sir,  for  many  years. 

Your  friend  ttnd  servant, 

Juan  Fcca. 
Ckphalonia,  SepUmher  24fA,  1596. 


'n 


saro,  mercft* 


K] 


PBOOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


411 


former  writing,  without  which  money  he  said  he  could  not  go,  for  that  as 
he  was  undone  utterly  when  he  was  in  the  ship  Santa  Anna,  which  came 
from  China,  and  was  robbed  at  Caiirornia.  And  yet  again,  afterward,  I 
wrote  him  another  letter  from  Venice,  whereunto  he  wrote  me  answer  by 
a  letter  written  in  his  Greek  language,  dated  the  20th  of  October,  l^^ttS, 
the  which  I  have  still  by  me,  wherein  he  promiseth  still  to  go  wktn  me 
into  England,  and  perform  the  said  voyage  of  discovery  of  the  north-west 
passage  into  the  South  Sea  by  the  said  straits,  which  he  calleth  the  Strait 
of  Nova  Spania,  which  he  saith  is  but  thirty  days'  voyage  in  the  straits,  if 
I  will  send  him  the  money  formerly  v.'ritten  for  his  charges ;  the  which 
money  I  could  not  yet  send  him,  for  that  I  had  not  yet  recovered  my  pen- 
sion owing  me  by  the  Company  of  Turkey  aforesaid;  and  so,  of  long  time, 
I  stayed  any  further  proceeding  with  him  in  this  matter. 

And  yet,  lastly,  when  I  myself  was  at  Zante,  in  the  month  of  June, 
1602,  mmding  to  pass  from  thence  for  England  by  sea,  for  that  I  had  then 
recovered  a  little  money  from  the  Company  of  Turkey,  by  an  order  of  the 
lords  of  the  Privy  Council  of  England,  1  wrote  another  letter  to  this  Greek 
pilot,  to  Cephalonia,  and  required  him  to  come  to  me  to  Zante,  and  go 
with  me  into  England,  but  I  had  no  answer  thereof  from  him ;  for  that, 
as  I  heard  afterward  at  Zante,  he  was  then  dead,  or  very  likely  to  die  of 

freat  sickness.  Whereupon,  I  returned  myself,  by  sea,  from  Zante  to 
'enice,  and  from  thence  I  went,  by  land,  through  France,  into  England, 
where  I  arrived  at  Christmas,  anno  1602,  safely,  I  thank  God,  after  my 
absence  from  thence  ten  years'  time,  with  great  "<bles  had  for  the  Com- 
pany of  Turkey's  business,  which  hath  cost  me  .  great  sum  of  money, 
for  the  which  I  am  not  yet  satisfied  of  them. 


'i."i 


B. 


Furs  and  the  Fur  Trade. 


Lazaro,  English 


Fur,  strictly  speaking,  is  the  soft,  fine  hair  which  forms  the  natural 
clothing  of  certain  animals,  particularly  of  those  inhabiting  cold  countries. 
In  commerce,  however,  the  word  is  understood  to  mean  the  skin  of  the 
animal,  with  the  hair  attached,  either  before  or  after,  bat  generally  after, 
it  has  been  rendered  soft  and  pliable,  by  a  peculiar  process,  called  dress- 
ing. The  undressed  skins  are  commonly  called  peltry :  but  fur  and 
peltry  are  employed  as  synonymous  terms ;  and  the  word  fur,  in  com- 
merce, is  generally  to  be  understood  va  peltry.  The  skins  of  seals,  bears, 
wolves,  lions,  leopards,  bufialoes,  &c.,  are  also  placed  under  the  denomi- 
nation oi  furs,  in  commerce. 

Skins  must  have  formed  the  first  clothing  of  man  in  cold  countries  ; 
and,  at  the  present  day,  they  constitute  the  whoje  or  the  greater  part  of 
the  dress  of  many  millions  of  individuals.  For  this  purpose,  the  skin, 
with  or  without  the  fur,  is  employed  as  cloth  would  be ;  or  t  ic  fur  alone 
is  converted  by  art  into  the  peculiar  substance  called  felt,  of  which  hats 
are  made. 


413 


PROOrS   AND   ILLUSTRATIOIta. 


t& 


Fun  differ  in  value,  according  to  the  fineness,  the  len^b,  the  thick- 
ness, and  the  color,  of  their  hair.  The  most  precious  is  that  of  the 
ermine,  a  species  of  weasel ;  it  is  thick,  soft,  fine,  and  of  dazzling  white- 
ness, except  the  tip  of  the  tail,  which  is  of  a  glossy  black  color,  and  is 
used  to  form  spots  on  the  skin.  Of  great  value,  also,  are  the  skins  of  the 
marten,  the  sable,  the  fiery  fox,  the  silver  fox,  and  the  black  fox;  after 
which  come  those  of  the  sea  otter,  the  beaver,  the  seal,  and — though  far 
inferior  to  the  other; — of  the  muskrat,  the  raccoon,  the  fox,  the  weasel, 
&>c.  Of  these,  the  ermine  is,  as  before  said,  the  most  precious;  the 
muskrat  is  that  of  which  the  greatest  quantity  ia  collected;  while  the 
aggregate  value  of  the  beaver  skins  annually  consumed  among  civilized 
nations  is  greater  than  that  of  all  the  other  furs  together. 

The  finer  furs  are  principally  used  in  Russia,  Turkey,  and  China,— . 
in  the  latter  country  especially,  where  they  form  important  portions  of  the 
dress  of  every  rich,  noble,  or  ostentatious  person.  In  Europe,  and  in  the 
United  States,  flirs  are  also  much  worn  in  the  shape  of  caps,  muffs,  and 
trimmings.  The  greatest  consumption  of  the  inferior  furs  is  in  the  man- 
ufacture of  hats,  which  is  of  comparatively  modern  date,  and,  as  well  as 
the  use  of  those  articles,  is  confined  almost  entirely  to  Europe  and 
America.  The  furs  mostly  used  for  this  purpose  are  those  of  the  beaver, 
the  otter,  the  nutria,  (an  animal  resembling  the  beaver,  found  in  Patago- 
nia,) and  the  muskrat;  but  the  greater  number  of  hats  are  composed 
chiefly  of  wool,  with  or  without  a  slight  covering  of  fur. 

Nearly  all  the  furs  now  brought  into  commerce  are  procured  from  the 
countries  north  of  the  40th  parallel  of  north  latitude,  through  the  agency 
of  the  British  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  or  of  the  Russian  American 
Company,  or  by  various  private  associations  and  individuals  in  the  United 
States.  Of  those  obtained  in  the  Russian  dominions,  some  are  carried 
over  land  to  China,  others  also  over  land  to  Europe,  and  the  remainder  by 
sea  to  Europe.  Those  found  in  the  territories  of  the  United  States  are 
nearly  all  carried  to  New  York,  from  which  portions  are  sent  to  London 
or  to  Canton.  The  furs  collected  in  the  parts  of  America  possessed  or 
claimed  by  Great  Britain,  are  mostly  shipped  for  London,  either  at  Mont- 
real, or  at  York  Factory  on  Hudson's  Bay,  or  at  Foit  Vancouver,  at  the 
head  of  navigation  of  the  Columbia  River.  The  southern  hemisphere 
supplies  scarcely  any  furs,  except  those  of  the  nutria,  of  which  consid- 
erable quantities  are  brought  from  Buenos  Ayres  to  New  York  or  to 
London.  London  is  undoubtedly  the  most  extensive  mart  for  furs  in  the 
world,  and  New  York  is  probably  the  second ;  of  the  others,  the  princi- 
pal are  Leipsic,  Nijney-Novogorod  on  the  Wolga,  Kiakta  on  the  boun- 
dary line  between  Russia  and  China,  and  Canton.  Of  the  value  of  the 
furs  thus  annually  brought  into  trade,  it  is  impossible  to  form  an  exact 
estimate.  According  to  a  rough  calculation,  the  amount  received  by  the 
first  collectors,  for  the  skins  in  their  undressed  state,  is  about  three  mil- 
lions of  dollars ;  but  they  afterwards  pass  through  many  hands,  so  that  the 
price  is  much  enhanced  before  they  reach  the  actual  consumer. 

The  fur  trade  has  been,  hitherto,  very  profitable  to  those  engaged  in  it ; 
but  it  is  now,  from  a  variety  of  causes,  declining  every  where.  The  in- 
crease in  the  number  of  persons  employed  in  the  pursuit,  and  the  spread 
of  civilized  population  over  the  countries  from  which  the  furs  are  chiefly 
procured,  are  rapidly  diminishing  the  number  of  the  animals;  so  that,  in 
many  countries  in  which  they  formerly  abounded,  not  one  can  be  obtained 


C.1 


PROOFS   AND   ILLUSTBATIONI. 


413 


at  the  present  day.  This  diminution  in  the  amount  of  the  article  offered 
has  not,  however,  increased  (he  price ;  as  other  articles,  composed  of  silk, 
wool,  or  cotton,  are  substituted  for  furs,  with  advantage,  both  as  to  com- 
fort and  cheapness. 

For  particulars  with  regard  to  the  manner  in  which  the  fur  trade  of  the 
northern  parts  of  America  is  conducted,  see  the  accounts  of  the  Russian 
American  Company's  establishments  and  system,  in  the  Geographical 
Sketch,  and  in  chap.  xii.  of  the  History,  and  the  view  of  the  Hudson's 
Bay  Company's  proceedings,  in  chap,  xviii.  Respecting  the  furs  them- 
selves,  minute  information  may  be  derived  from  an  article  on  the  subject 
by  Mr.  Aiken,  in  the  Transactions  of  the  Society  for  the  Encouragement 
of  Arts,  Manufactures,  and  Commerce,  published  at  London  in  1830,  as 
also  from  a  similar  a>ticle,  by  Professor  Silliman,  in  the  American  Jour- 
nal of  Science  and  Art  for  April,  1834,  and  from  the  article  on  furs  in 
McCuUoch's  Dictionary  of  Commerce. 


c. 


CORRGSPONDENCE   BETWEEN   THE    SpANISH  CoMHANDANT   AND   COM- 
MISSIONER    AT     NOOTKA      SOCND    AND     THE      MaSTERS      OV    THE 

American  tradinq  Vessels  Columbia  and  Hope,  respecting 
THE  Occurrences  at  that  Place  in  the  Summer  or  1789.* 


Trcmslation  of  the  Letter  from  the  Spanish  Commandant  to  Captains 
Robert  Gray  and  Joseph  Ingraham. 

NooTKA,  August  Si,  1793. 

In  order  to  satisfy  the  court  of  England,  as  is  just,  for  the  injury,  dam- 
ages, and  usurpation,  which  it  conceives  itself  to  have  sustained  at  this 
port,  in  the  year  1789, 1  have  to  request  of  you,  gentlemen,  the  favor  to 
inform  me,  with  that  sincerity  which  distinguishes  you,  and  which  is 
conformable  with  truth  and  honor,  for  what  reason  Don  Esteban  Jose 
Martinez  seized  the  vessels  of  Colnett,  [called]  the  Iphigenia  and  the 
North-West  America?  What  establishment  or  building  had  Mr.  Meares 
on  the  arrival  of  the  Spaniards  'I  What  territories  are  those  which  he 
says  that  he  purchased  from  Maquinna,  Yuquiniarri,  or  other  chief  of 
these  tribes!  With  what  objects  were  the  crew  of  the  North- West 
America  transferred  to  the  Columbia,  and  ninety-six  skins  placed  on 
board  that  shipt  Finally,  what  was  the  whole  amount  of  skins  carried 
by  you  to  China,  and  to  whom  did  they  belong? 

Your  most  obedient  and  assured  servant, 

Juan  Francisco  de  la  Bodega  t  Quadra. 

*  The  letter  of  Gray  and  Ingraham  is  copied  from  Ingraham 's  Jonmal  of  his  voyage 
in  the  Hope,  preserve  1,  in  manuscript,  in  the  library  of  the  Department  of  State  at 
Washington.  The  translation  of  Quadra's  letter  is  made  from  the  original  in 
Spanish,  which  is  attached  by  a  wafer  to  the  journal.  A  synopsis  of  the  Tetter  of 
Gray  and  Ingraham,  which  is,  in  every  respect,  incorrect,  may  be  found  in  Vancou- 
ver's  Journal,  vol.  i.  p.  389.    See  p.  242  of  this  History. 


I  l-^ 


m\ 


414 


PROOrS    AND   ILLCSTRATIOSB. 


[a 


Answer  of  Captains  Gray  and  Ingraham  to  Don  Juan  Francisco  etc  la 

Bodega  y  Quadra,* 


ii  I 


Sir, 


NooTKA  Sound,  Augutt  3d,  1703. 


Your  esteemed  favor  was  handed  to  us  yesterday,  requesting  from 
us  information  relative  to  the  transactions  between  the  English  and  Span- 
iards  in  this  sound,  in  the  year  17cl9,  which  we  will  do  with  great  pleasure, 
and  impartially,  as  you  request. 

On  the  5th  of  May,  1789,  when  Don  Estevan  Jose  Mutvinez  arrived  in 
Friendly  Cove,  he  found  riding  at  anchor  there  the  Iphigenia  only ;  the 
ship  Columbia  being  at  Mahwhinna,  five  miles  up  the  sound.  The  sloop 
Washington  and  North-West  America  (schooner)  were  on  a  cruise.  This 
information  is  necessary  in  order  to  regulate  tne  sequel  of  the  present. 
After  the  usual  ceremonies  of  meeting  were  over,  Don  Martinez  requested 
the  papers  of  each  vessel,  and  demanded  why  they  were  at  anchor  in 
Nnotka  Sound,  alleging  it  belonged  to  hia  Catholic  majesty.  Captain 
Viana,  who  passed  as  commander  of  the  Iphigenia,  answered,  they  had 
put  in,  being  in  distress,  having  but  little  provisions,  and  in  great  want  of 
every  necessary,  such  as  cables,  anchors,  rigging,  sails,  &.c. ;  that  they 
were  in  daily  expectation  of  the  arrival  of  Captain  Meares  from  Macao, 
to  supply  them,  when  they  should  depart.  Captain  Meares  was  expected 
to  return  in  the  same  vessel  he  sailed  in  from  hence  in  the  year  1788, 
which  was  under  the  Portuguese  colors,  and  had  a  Portuguese  captain  on 
board :  this  vessel,  with  the  Iphigenia,  were  said  to  belong  to  one  Cravalia, 
or  Cavallo,  a  merchant  of  Macao,  in  whose  name  the  Iphigenia's  papers 
were  made  out.  Seeing  the  Iphigenia  was  in  such  want,  Don  Martinez 
gave  them  a  temporary  assistance,  by  supplying  them  with  such  articles 
as  they  were  most  in  want,  till  the  vessel  before  mentioned  should  arrive. 
At  this  time  there  was  not  the  least  suspicion  of  any  misunderstanding  or 
disturbance  among  us,  as  Don  Martinez  was  apparently  satisfied  with  the 
answers  each  vessel  had  given  to  his  request. 

However,  on  the   10th  of  May,  the  San  Carlos,  Captain  Arrow, 

(Haro,]  arrived.  The  same  day  the  American  officers  came  to  Uquot,  or 
•"riendly  Cove,  to  welcome  them  in;  and  the  next  morning,  the  11th  of 
May,  Don  Martinez  captured  the  Iphigenia,  and  his  reason,  as  we  under- 
stand, was,  that,  in  their  Portuguese  instructions,  they  had  Oiders  to  cap- 
ture any  English,  Spanish,  or  Russian,  subjects  they  met  on  the  north- 
west coast  of  America.  This,  at  the  time,  seemed  improbable,  as  she 
was  a  vessel  of  small  force ;  and  it  was  afterwards  found  to  have  been  a 
mistake,  owing  to  their  want  of  a  perfect  knowledge  of  the  Portuguese 
language.  However,  after  the  vessel  was  taken,  the  officers  and  seamen 
were  divided,  some  on  board  the  Princesa,  and  some  on  board  the  San 
Carlos,  where  they  were  treated  with  all  imaginable  kindness,  and  every 
attention  paid  them. 

•  Reference  is  fVequently  made  to  this  letter  in  the  8th  and  11th  chapters  of  the 
preceding  History.  A  synopsis  of  its  contents  n^ay  be  found  in  the  10th  chapter  of 
Vancouver's  account  of  his  expedition,  on  compa.'ine  which  with  the  letter,  it  will 
be  seen  that  the  evidence  of  the  American  captains  is  garbled  and  distorted  in  the 
most  unworthy  manner  in  the  synopsis,  not  only  by  suppressions,  but  even  by  direct 
falsifications.  To  show  this  fully,  it  would  be  necessary  to  insert  the  whole  of  Van- 
couver's synopsis;  the  assertion,  however,  is  sufficiently  proved  by  the  few  notes 
which  follow.  ^  .  .  .    


c] 


PROOrS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


416 


^  On  the  24tli  of  May,  the  above-mentioned  mistake  being  discovered, 
the  Iphigenia  was  returned  again,  and  the  Portuguese  flag  hoisted  oo 
board  her:  the  same  Utiy,  Captain  Douglas,  with  the  Portuguese  captain 
and  seamen,  repaired  on  board.  The  Iphigenia,  while  in  poHserision  of 
the  Spaniards,  from  being  a  wreck  was  put  in  complete  order  for  sea, 
being  calked,  rigging  and  sails  repaired,  anchors  and  cables  sent  from  the 
Princesa,  d&o.  On  the  26th,  Don  Martinez  supplied  them  with  every  kind 
of  provisions  they  were  in  need  of,  for  which  Captain  Douglas  gave  him 
bills  on  Cravalia,  the  before-mentioned  merchant  of  Macao.  On  the  31st, 
the  Iphigenia  sailed,  and  was  saluted  by  the  Spanish  fort ;  and  the  com- 
modore accompanied  them  out  of  the  harbor,  giving  every  assistance  with 
boats,  dtc.  When  Captain  Douglas  took  his  leave  of  the  commodore,  he 
declared  he  should  ever  entertain  a  sense  of  Don  Martinez's  kindness, 
deeming  his  conduct  relative  to  the  vessel  no  more  than  his  duty  as  a 
king's  officer.  Upon  the  whole,  we  both  believe  the  Iphigenia's  being 
detained  was  of  infinite  service  to  those  who  were  concerned  in  her. 
This  must  be  plain  to  every  one  who  will  consider  the  situation  of  the 
vessel  when  the  Princesa  arrived,  and  the  advantages  reaped  from  the 
supplies  and  assistance  of  the  Spaniards.  The  detention,  if  it  may  be 
called  so,  could  be  no  detriment ;  for,  had  nothing  taken  place,  she  must 
have  remained  two  months  longer  at  least  having,  as  has  already  been 
mentioned,  put  into  port,  being  in  distress.  Of  course  they  could  not 
have  sailed  till  supplies  arrived,  which  was  not  till  July,  as  will  appear  in 
the  sequel :  whereas,  being  early  fitted,  as  above  mentioned,  she  sailed  on 
the  coast  northward  of  Nootka  Sound,  and,  there  being  no  other  vessel  there, 
they  collected  upwards  of  seven  hundred  sea  otter  skins ;  which  has  been 
often  represented  to  us  by  Captain  Douglas  and  his  officers,  after  our 
arrival  in  China.  This  may  suffice  for  the  transactions  relative  to  the 
Iphigenia.  Before  Captain  Douglas  sailed,  he  gave  Don  Estevan  Marti- 
nez 'a  letter  to  Mr.  Funter,  master  of  the  schooner  North-West  America, 
telling  hin^,  from  Captain  Meares's  not  arriving  at  the  appointed  time,  there 
was  great  reason  to  fear  the  vessel  he  sailed  from  Nootka  in  had  never 
reached  China,  (she  being  in  bad  condition  when  she  sailed  from  this 
place;)  therefore,  as  he,  Mr.  Funter,  must,  on  his  arrival,  be  destitute  of 
every  necessary,  he  was  at  liberty  to  conduct  as  he  thought  most  condu- 
cive to  the  interests  of  his  employers.  We  shall  make  mention  of  this 
vessel  again  hereafter. 

Interim,  we  observe  your  wish  to  be  acquainted  what  house  or  estab- 
lishment Mr.  Meares  had  at  the  time  the  Spaniards  arrived  here.  We 
answer  in  a  word.  None.  On  the  arrival  of  the  Columbia,  in  the  year 
1788,  there  was  a  house,  or  rather  a  hut,  consisting  of  rough  posts,  cov- 
ered with  boards,  made  by  the  Indians ;  but  this  Captain  Douglas  pulled 
to  pieces,  prior  to  his  sailing  for  the  Sandwich  Islands,  the  same  year. 
The  boards  he  took  on  board  the  Iphigenia,  and  the  roof  he  gave  to 
Captain  Kendrick,  which  was  cut  up  and  used  as  firewood  on  board  the 
Columbia ;  so  that,  on  the  arrival  of  Don  Estevan  J.  Martinez,  there  was 

*  Of  the  whole  of  this  paramph,  all  that  is  said  by  Vancouver  is,  "The  vessel 
and  cargo  were  liberated,  ana  Martinez  supplied  the  Iphigenia's  wants  from  the 
Princesa,  enabling  her,  by  so  doing,  to  prosecute  her  voyage  without  waiting  for  the 
return  of  Mr.  Meares."  The  extremity  of  distress  to  which  the  Iphigenia  was  re- 
duced on  her  arrivtd  at  Nootka,  the  seven  hundred  sea  otter  skins,  and  the  other  ad- 
vantages derived  by  her  owners  from  Uie  supplies  furnished  by  the  Spanish  command- 
ant, are  carefully  kept  out  of  sight. 


416 


PnOOTS   AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[C. 


•  it-' 


:i: 


*i' 


no  vestige  of  any  house  remaining.  As  to  the  land  Mr.  Meares  said  he 
purchased  of  Mnqiiinna  or  any  other  chief,  we  cannot  say  further  than  we 
never  heard  of  any;  although  we  remained  among  these  people  nine 
months,  and  could  converse  with  them  perfectly  well.  Besides  this,  we 
have  asked  Maquinna  and  other  chiefs,  since  our  late  arrival,  if  Captain 
Meares  ever  purchased  any  land  in  Nootka  Sound;  they  answered,  No; 
that  Captain  Kendrick  was  the  only  man  to  whom  they  had  ever  sold 
any  And. 

On  the  8th  of  June,  the  schooner  North- West  America  arrived,  and 
the  next  day  the  Spaniards  took  possession  of  her.  Don  E.  J.  Martinez 
had  an  account  taken  of  the  property  on  board,  particularly  of  the  skins, 
which  he  said  should  be  given  to  the  officers  and  seamen,  that  they  might 
be  sure  of  their  wages.  On  the  16th  of  June,  the  sloop  Princess  Royal 
arrived  from  Macao,  commanded  by  Thomas  Hudson ;  this  vessel  brought 
accounts  of  the  safe  arrival  of  Captain  Meares,  and  that  Captain  Colnett 
was  corning  on  the  coast,  commodore  of  the  English  trading  vessels  from 
Macao  for  the  ensuing  season,  in  a  snow  named  the  Argonaut.  Mr. 
Hudson  likewise  brought  accounts  of  the  failure  of  Juan  Cravalia  &  Co., 
merchants  of  Macao,  before  mentioned.  What  right  the  commodore  had 
to  detain  the  North- West  America  before,  it  is  not  for  us  to  say ;  but  he 
always  said  it  was  an  agreement*  between  Captain  Douglas  and  himself; 
but,  after  the  arrival  of  this  vessel  with  the  above  news,  he  held  her  as 
security  for  the  bills  of  exchange  drawn  on  said  Cravalia  &  Co.  in  favor 
of  his  Catholic  majesty  :  this  we  have  heard  him  say.  On  the  2d  of  July, 
the  Princess  Royal  sailed  out  of  the  port,  having,  to  our  knowledge,  been 
treated  by  the  commodore  and  his  officers  with  every  possible  attention, 
which  Captain  Hudson  himself  seemed  conscious  of  and  grateful  for. 
Prior  to  this  vessel's  sailing,  the  commodore  gave  to  Mr.  Funter  all  the 
skins  he  brought  in  in  the  North-West  America,  which  were  shipped  on 
board  the  sloop  Princess  Royal  by  Mr.  Funter,  for  his  own  account.  In 
the  evening  of  the  2d,  a  sail  was  descried  from  the  Spanish  fort.  We 
were  amontr  the  first  that  went  out  to  meet  them.  It  proved  to  be  the 
Argonaut,  Captain  Colnett,  before  mentioned.  The  transactions  of  thii^ 
vessel  were  such,  that  we  can  give  the  sense  of  them  in  a  few  words,  that 
may  answer  eve.y  purpose  of  the  particulars,  many  of  which  are  not  im- 
mediately to  the  point,  or  tending  to  what  we  suppose  you  wish  to  know. 

It  seems  Captain  Meares,  with  some  other  Englishmen  at  Macao,  had 
concluded  to  erect  a  fort  and  settle  a  colony  in  Nootka  Sound ;  from  what 
authority  we  cannot  say.  However,  on  the  arrival  of  the  Argonaut,  we 
heard  Captain  Colnett  inform  the  Spanish  commodore  he  had  come  for 
that  purpose,  and  to  hoist  the  British  flag,  take  formal  possession,  &.c. : 


*  The  account  of  the  seizure  of  the  North- West  America  in  the  letter  is  thus 
preiented  by  Vancouver :  — 

"  The  North-West  America  ia  stated  by  these  gentlemen  to  have  arrived  on  the 
8th  of  June,  and  that,  on  the  following  day,  the  Spaniards  took  possession  of  her. 
Ten  days  afterwards  came  the  Princess  Royal,  commanded  by  Mr.  Hudson,  from 
Macao,  who  brought  the  news  of  the  failure  of  the  merchant  at  Macao,  to  whom  the 
Iphigenla  and  other  vessels  belonged ;  that  Martinez  assigned  this  as  a  reason  for 
his  capturing  the  North- West  America,  (although  she  was  seized  before  the  arrival  of 
the  Princess  Royal ;)  that  he  had  detained  her  as  an  indemnification  for  the  bills  of 
exchange  drawn  on  her  owner  in  favor  of  his  Catholic  majesty." 

The  parenthesis  is  here  inserted  obviously  with  the  intention  of  creating  the  im- 
pression that  Gray  and  Ingraham  had  committed  a  falsehood  or  inconsistency  in  their 
evidence ;  although  this  idea  is  specially  contradicted  in  the  letter. 


C.1 


PROOI'S    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


417 


to  which  the  commodore  answered,  ho  hnd  tnken  possession  already  in  the 
name  of  his  Catholic  majesty ;  on  which  Captain  Colnett  asked  if  he 
would  be  prevented  from  building  a  hnune  in  the  port.  The  commodore, 
mistaking  his  moaning,  answered  hint,  ho  was  at  liberty  to  erect  a  tent, 
get  wood  and  water,  dtc,  after  which  he  was  at  liberty  to  depart  when  he 
pleased ;  but  Captain  Colnett  said  that  was  not  what  he  wanted,  but  to 
build  a  block  house,  erect  a  fort,  nnd  settle  a  colony,  for  the  crown  of 
Great  Britain.  Don  Estevan  Josu  Martinez  answered,  No;  that,  in  doing 
that,  he  should  violate  the  orders  of  his  king,  run  a  risk  of  losing  his 
commission,  and  not  only  that,  but  it  would  be  relinquishing  the  8pan« 
iards'  claim  to  the  coast :  besides,  Don  Martinez  observed,  the  vessels  did 
not  belong  to  the  king,  nor  was  he  intrusted  with  powers  to  transact  such 
public  business.  On  which  Captain  Colnett  answered,  he  was  a  king's 
officer ;  but  Don  Estevan  replied,  his  being  in  the  navy  was  of  no  conse- 
quence in  the  business.  *  In  conversing  on  the  subject,  after  the  arrival 
of  the  vessel  in  port,  it  seems  Captain  Colnett  insulted  the  commr  lore  by 
threatening  him,  and  drew  his  sword  in  the  Princesa's  cabin ;  on  which 
Don  Martinez  ordered  the  vessel  to  be  seized.  We  did  not  see  him  draw 
his  sword,  but  were  informed  of  the  circumstance  by  those  whose  veracity 
we  had  no  reason  to  doubt.  After  seizing  the  Argonaut,  the  sloop  .>^rin 
cess  Royal  arrived  a  second  time ;  and,  as  she  belonged  to  the  same  com- 
pany, the  commodore  took  possession  of  her  also.  With  respect  to  the 
treatment  of  the  prisoners,  although  we  have  not  perused  Mr.  Meares's 
publication,  we  presume  none  of  them  will  be  backward  in  confessing 
that  Don  E.  J.  Martinez  always  treated  them  very  kindly,  and  all  his 
officers,  consistent  with  the  character  of  gentlemen. 

Having  acquainted  you  with  the  principal  part  of  the  business,  agree- 
able to  request,  one  thing  remains  to  answer,  which  is,  of  the  captain, 
officers,  and  seamen,  of  the  North-West  America.  You  ask  if  we  car- 
ried them  to  China.  We  did,  and  with  them  one  hundred  sea  otter  skins, 
the  value  of  which,  we  judge,  independent  of  freight,  was  four  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  seventy-five  dollars;  these  were  delivered  to  Mr. 
Meares,  and  were,  we  suj-pose,  his  property.  We  sincerely  hope,  sir, 
when  things  are  represented  with  truth,  it  will  rescue  our  friend  Don 
Estevan  J.  Martinez  from  censure ;  at  least,  that  he  may  not  be  deemed 
an  impostor  and  a  pirate,  which  many,  from  only  hearing  one  part  of  the 
story,  supposed  he  was.  As  to  the  treatment  of  the  Amcricnns  by  Don 
Estevan,  we  have  ever  testified  it  in  terms  due  to  such  hospitality,  and 
are  happy  again  to  have  it  in  our  power  to  do  what  we  deem  juj)i.>'  to  his 
conduct.  While  speaking  of  others  of  your  nation,  we  can  n«.'.  :r  be  un- 
mindful of  you.  Your  kind  reception  and  treatment  of  us  has  made  an 
impression  that  will  not  be  easily  erased ;  and  we  hope  you  will  bear  in 
mind  how  very  sincerely  we  are,  sir,  your  most  humble  sci .  ints, 

Robe. IT  Grat, 
JobiEPH  Ingrahau. 


<h  i 


'.I 


•  Vancouver  here  writes,  —  using  the  first  person,  as  if  copying  the  words  of  Uie 
American  captains,  —  "In  conversation  afterwards  on  this  subject,  as  we  were  in- 
formed, (say  these  gentlemen,)  — for  we  were  not  present  during  this  transaction, — 
some  dispute  arose  in  the  Princesa's  cabin ;  on  which  Don  Martinez  ordered  the  Ar- 
gonaut to  be  seized.  Soon  after  this  the  Princess  Royal  returned,"  &c. ;  the  rumor 
Uiat  "  Colnett  itisulted  the  commodore  by  threatening  him,  and  drew  hi*  award  in  the 
Princesa's  ealrin,"  being  omitted. 

53 


418 


PROOFS   AND   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


EA' 


'  'i 


D. 

Official  Documents  relative  to  the  Dispute  between  Great 
Britain  and  Spain  in  1790.* 

Message  from  the  King  of  Great  Britain  to  Parliament,  May  5th,  1790. 

George  R. 

His  majesty  has  received  information  that  two  vessels,  belonging 
to  his  majesty's  subjects,  and  navigated  under  the  British  flag,  and  two 
others,  of  which  the  description  is  not  hitherto  sufficiently  ascertained, 
hav<^  been  captured  at  Nootka  Sound,  on  the  north-western  coast  of 
America,  by  an  officer  commanding  two  Spanish  ships  of  war ;  that  the 
cargoes  of  the  British  vessels  have  been  seized,  and  that  their  officers  and 
crews  have  been  sent  as  prisoners  to  a  Spanish  port. 

The  capture  of  one  of  these  vessels  had  before  been  notified  by  the 
ambassador  of  his  Catholic  majesty,  by  order  of  his  court,  who,  at  the 
same  time,  desired  that  measures  might  be  taken  for  preventing  his  majes- 
ty's subjects  from  frequenting  those  coasts,  which  were  alleged  to  have 
been  previously  occupied  and  frequented  by  the  subjects  of  Spain.  Com- 
plaints were  also  made  of  the  fisheries  carried  on  by  his  majesty's  subjects 
in  the  seas  adjoining  to  the  Spanish  continent,  as  being  contrary  to  the 
rights  of  the  crown  of  Spain.  In  consequence  of  this  communication,  a 
demand  was  immediately  made,  by  his  miajesty's  order,  for  adequate  satis- 
faction, and  for  the  restitution  of  the  vessel,  previous  to  any  other  dis- 
cussion. 

By  the  answer  from  the  court  of  Spain,  it  appears  that  this  vessel  and 
her  crew  had  been  set  at  liberty  by  the  viceroy  of  Mexico ;  but  this  is 
represented  to  have  been  done  by  him  on  the  supposition  that  nothing  but 
the  ignorance  of  the  rights  of  Spain  encouraged  the  individuals  of  other 
nations  to  come  to  those  coasts  for  the  purpose  of  making  establishments, 
or  carrying  on  trade,  and  in  conformity  to  his  previous  instructions,  re- 
quiring him  to  show  all  possible  regard  to  the  British  nation. 

No  satisfaction  is  made  or  offered,  and  a  direct  claim  is  asserted  by  the 
court  of  Spain  to  the  exclusive  rights  of  sovereignty,  navigation,  and 
commerce,  in  the  territories,  coasts,  and  seas,  in  that  part  of  the  world. 

His  majesty  has  now  directed  his  minister  at  Madrid  to  make  a  fresh 
representation  on  this  subject,  and  to  claim  such  full  and  adequate  satis- 
faction as  the  nature  of  the  case  evidently  requires.  And,  under  these 
circumstances,  his  majesty,  having  also  received  information  that  consid- 
eraoK-f  armaments  are  carrying  on  in  the  ports  of  Spain,  has  judged  it 
indispensably  necessary  to  give  orders  for  making  such  preparations  as 
may  put  it  in  his  majesty's  power  to  act  with  vigor  and  effect  in  support 
of  the  honor  of  his  crown  and  the  interests  of  his  people.    And  his 

*  The  following  papers,  with  the  exception  of  the  last,  are  taken  from  the  London 
Annual  Register  for  1790.  The  translations  of  the  Spanish  notes  are  evidently  made 
with  rutle  care.    See  chap.  iz.  of  this  History. 


Hi!  I 


41 


Ii:.' 


D.] 


PROOFS   AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


419 


majesty  recommends  it  to  his  faithful  Commons,  on  whose  zeal  and  public 
spirit  he  has  the  most  perfect  reliance,  to  enable  him  to  take  such  meas- 
ures, and  to  mal^e  such  augmentation  of  hia  forces,  as  may  be  eventually 
necessary  for  this  purpose. 

It  is  his  majesty's  earnest  wish  that  the  justice  of  his  majesty's  demands 
may  insure,  from  the  wisdom  and  equity  of  his  Catholic  majesty,  the  sat- 
isfaction which  is  so  unquestionably  due,  and  that  this  affair  may  be  termi- 
nated in  such  a  manner  as  to  prevent  any  grounds  of  misunderstanding  in 
future,  and  to  continue  and  confirm  that  harmony  and  friendship  which 
has  so  happily  subsisted  between  the  two  courts,  and  which  his  majesty 
will  always  endeavor  to  maintain  and  improve,  by  all  such  means  as  are 
consistent  with  the  dignity  of  his  majesty's  crown  and  the  essential  interests 
of  his  subjects. 

G.  R. 
..........         ^2.)      --^--'-- 

Declaration  of  the  King  of  Spain  to  all  the  other  Courts  of  Europe. 

ArAnjitez,  June  4th,  1790. 

The  king,  being  apprized  of  the  particulars  laid  before  his  ministers, 
on  the  16th  of  May,  by  Mr.  Merry,  his  Britannic  majesty's  minister, 
relative  to  the  unexpected  dispute  between  this  court  and  Great  Britain, 
as  to  the  vessels  captured  in  Port  St.  Lawrence,  or  Nootka  Sound,  on  the 
coast  of  California,  in  the  South  Sea,  has  commanded  the  undersigned, 
his  majesty's  first  secretary  of  state,  to  answer  to  the  said  minister  of 
England,  that  he  had  the  honor  to  make  known  personally,  and  in  writing, 
to  the  said  minister,  upon  the  18th  of  the  same  month,  that  his  majesty 
at  no  time  pretended  to  any  rights  in  any  ports,  seas,  or  places,  other  than 
what  belongs  to  his  crown  by  the  most  solemn  treaties,  recognized  by  all 
nations,  and  more  particularly  with  Great  Britain,  by  a  right  founded  on 
particular  treaties,  the  uniform  consent  of  both  nations,  and  by  an  imme- 
morial, regular,  and  established  possession ;  that  his  majesty  is  ready  to 
enter  upon  every  examination  and  discussion  most  likely  to  terminate  the 
dispute  in  an  amicable  way,  and  is  willing  to  enter  into  immediate  con- 
ference with  the  new  ambassador,  and,  if  justice  requires  it,  will  certainly 
disapprove  of  the  conduct,  and  punish  his  subjects,  if  they  have  gone 
beyond  their  powers.  This  offer  and  satisfaction  will,  it  is  hoped,  serve 
as  an  example  to  the  court  of  London  to  do  as  much  on  its  part. 

As  the  two  courts  of  London  and  Madrid  have  not  yet  received  proper 
and  authenticated  accounts  and  proofs  of  all  that  has  really  passed  in 
these  distant  latitudes,  a  contradiction  in  the  development  of  facts  has  by 
this  means  been  occasioned.  Even  at  this  moment,  the  papers  and  min- 
utes made  up  by  the  viceroy  of  New  Spain  on  this  matter  are  not  arrived. 
Posterior  letters,  indeed,  say  that  the  English  vessel,  the  Argonaut,  had 
not  been  seized  and  confiscated  till  legally  condemned,  and  that  the  small 
vessel,  called  the  Princess  Royil,  which  had  afterwards  arrived,  was  not 
seized  or  confiscated,  but  that,  on  the  contrary,  full  restitution  was  made 
by  the  viceroy,  and  an  obligation  only  taken  from  the  captain  to  pay  the 
price  of  the  vessel,  if  she  was  declared  a  lawful  prize ;  and  on  the  precise 
same  terms  he  had  liberated  a  Portuguese  vessel  belonging  to  Macao,  and 
two  American  vessels.  These  particulars  will  be  more  explicitly  proved 
and  elucidated  on  the  arrival  of  the  necessary  papers.    - 


\)\ 


..<... 11} 


490 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


ft 


[ft 

The  first  Uihe  that  our  ambassador  made  a  public  notification  of  this 
matter  to  the  ministry  at  London,  on  the  10th  of  February  last,  many  of 
the  circumstances  that  are  now  certain  were  then  doubtful.  The  rights 
and  immemorial  possession  of  Spain  to  tliat  coast  and  ports,  as  well  as 
several  other  titles  proper  to  be  taken  into  view  in  a  pacific  negotiation, 
were  not  quite  certain;  and,  if  the  court  of  London  had  m'"le  an  ami- 
cable return  to  the  complaints  made  by  his  majesty  relative  to  those  mer- 
chants whom  Spain  regards  as  usurpers  and  the  violators  of  treaties,  and 
had  showed  any  desire  to  terminate  the  affair  by  an  amicable  accommo- 
dation, a  great  deal  of  unnecessary  expense  might  have  been  saved.  The 
high  and  menacing  tone  and  manner  in  which  the  answer  of  the  British 
minister  was  couched,  at  a  time  when  no  certain  information  of  the  par- 
ticulars had  arrived,  made  the  Spanish  cabinet  entertain  some  suspicions 
that  it  was  made  not  so  much  for  the  purpose  of  the  dispute  in  question, 
as  a  pretext  to  break  entirely  with  our  court ;  for  which  reason  it  was 
thought  necessary  to  take  some  precautions  relative  to  the  subject. 

On  a  late  occasion,  a  complaint  was  made  to  the  court  of  Russia,  as 
to  some  similar  points  relative  to  the  navigation  of  the  South  Sea.  A 
candid  answer  being  returned  by  that  court,  the  affair  was  terminated 
without  the  least  disagreement.  Indeed,  it  may  be  asserted  with  truth, 
that  the  manner,  much  more  than  the  substance,  has  produced  the  dis- 
putes that  have  taken  place  on  this  head  with  Great  Britain. 

Nevertheless,  the  king  does  deny  —  what  the  enemies  to  peace  have 
industriously  circulated  —  that  Spain  extends  pretensions  and  rights  of 
sovereignty  over  the  whole  of  the  South  Sea  as  far  as  China.  When  the 
words  are  made  use  of,  "  In  the  name  of  the  king,  his  sovereignty,  navi- 
gation, and  exclusive  commerce  to  the  continent  and  islands  of  the  South 
Sea,"  it  is  the  manner  in  which  Spain,  in  speaking  of  the  Indies,  has 
always  used  these  words ;  that  is  to  say,  to  the  continent,  islands,  and 
seas,  which  belong  to  his  majesty,  so  far  as  discoveries  have  been  made 
and  secured  to  him  by  treaties  and  immemorial  possession,  and  uniformly 
acquiesced  in,  notwithstanding  some  infringements  by  individuals,  who 
have  been  punished  upon  knowledge  of  their  offences :  and  the  king  sets 
up  no  pretensions  to  any  possessions,  the  right  to  which  he  cannot  prove 
by  irrefragable  titles. 

Although  Spain  may  not  have  establishments  or  colonies  planted  upon 
the  coasts  or  in  the  ports  in  dispute,  it  does  not  follow  that  such  coast  or 
port  does  not  belong  to  her.  If  this  rule  were  to  be  followed,  one  nation 
might  establish  colonies  on  the  coasts  of  another  nation,  in  America,  Asia, 
Africa,  and  Europe,  by  which  means  there  would  be  no  fixed  boundaries 
—  a  circumstance  evidently  absurd. 

But,  whatever  may  be  the  issue  of  the  question  of  right,  upon  a  ma- 
ture consideration  >  *"  the  claims  of  both  parties,  the  result  of  the  question 
of  fact  is,  that  the  capture  of  the  English  vessels  is  repaired  by  the  resti- 
tution that  has  been  made,  and  the  conduct  of  the  viceroy :  for,  as  to  the 
qualification  of  such  restitution,  and  whether  the  prize  was  lawful  or  not, 
that  respects  the  question  of  right  yet  to  be  investigated ;  that  is  to  say, 
if  it  has  been  agreeably  to,  or  in  contradiction  to,  the  treaties  relative  to 
the  rights  and  possessions  of  Spain.  Lastly,  the  king  will  readily  enter 
into  any  plan  by  which  future  disputes  on  this  subject  may  be  obviated, 
that  no  reproach  may  be  upon  him  as  having  refused  any  means  of  recon- 
ciliation, and  for  the  establishment  of  a  solid  and  permanent  peace,  not 


D.. 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


421 


only  between  Spain  and  Great  Britain,  but  also  between  all  nations ;  for 
the  accomplishment  of  which  object,  his  majesty  has  made  the  greatest 
etforts  in  all  the  courts  of  Europe,  which  he  certainly  would  not  have 
done  if  he  had  any  design  to  involve  England  and  the  other  European 
powers  in  a  calamitous  and  destructive  war. 

El  Conde  de  Florida  Blanoa. 


(3.) 


i  boundaries 


Memorial  of  the  Court  of  Spain,  presented  by  Count  de  Florida  Blanca, 
the  Spanish  Minister  of  State,  to  Mr.  Fitzherbert,  the  British  Ambas- 
sador at  Madrid. 

Madrid,  June  \2th,  1790. 

By  every  treaty  upon  record  betwixt  Spain  and  the  other  nations  of 
Europe,  for  upwards  of  two  centuries,  an  exclusive  right  of  property, 
navigation,  and  commerce,  to  the  Spanish  West  Indies,  has  been  uniformly 
secured  to  Spain,  England  having  always  stood  forth  in  a  particular  man- 
ner in  support  of  such  right. 

By  article  8th  of  the  treaty  of  Utrecht,  (a  treaty  in  which  all  the 
European  nations  may  be  said  to  have  taken  a  part,)  Spain  and  England 
profess  to  establish  it  as  a  fundamental  principle  of  agreement,  that  the 
navigation  and  commerce  of  ihe  West  Indies,  under  the  dominion  of 
Spain,  shall  remain  in  the  precise  situation  in  which  they  stood  in  the 
reign  of  his  Catholic  majesty  Charles  II.,  and  that  that  rule  shall  be  invi- 
olably adhered  to,  and  be  incapable  of  infringement. 

After  this  maxim,  the  two  powers  stipulated  that  Spain  should  never 
grant  liberty  or  permission  to  any  nation  to  trade  to,  or  introduce  their 
merchandises  into,  the  Spanish  American  dominions,  nor  to  sell,  cede, 
or  give  up,  to  any  other  nation  its  lands,  dominions,  or  territories,  or  any 
part  thereof  On  the  contrary,  and  in  order  that  its  territories  should  be 
preserved  whole  and  entire,  England  offers  to  aid  and  assist  the  Spaniards 
in  reestablishing  the  limits  of  their  American  dominions,  and  placing 
them  in  the  exact  situation  they  stood  in  at  the  time  of  his  said  Catholic 
majesty  Charles  II.,  if,  by  accident,  it  shall  btj  discovered  that  they  have 
undergone  any  alteration  to  the  prejudice  of  Spain,  in  whatever  manner 
or  pretext  such  alteration  may  have  been  brouglit  about. 

The  vast  extent  of  the  Spanish  territories,  navigation,  and  dominion, 
on  the  continent  of  America,  isles  and  seas  contiguous  to  the  South  Sea, 
are  clearly  laid  down,  and  authenticated  by  a  variety  of  documents,  laws, 
and  formal  acts  of  possession,  in  the  reign  of  King  Charles  II.  It  is  also 
clearly  ascertained,  that,  notwithstanding  the  repeated  attempts  made  by 
adventurers  and  pirates  on  the  Spanish  co^asts  of  the  South  Sea  and  adja- 
cent islands,  Spain  has  still  preserved  her  possessions  entire,  and  opposed 
with  success  those  usurpations,  by  constantly  sending  her  ships  and  vessels 
to  take  possession  of  such  settlements.  By  these  measures  and  reiterated 
acts  of  possession,  Spain  has  preserved  her  dominion,  which  she  has  ex- 
tended to  the  borders  of  the  Russian  establishments,  in  that  part  of  the 
world. 

The  viceroys  of  Peru  and  New  Spain  having  been  informed  that  these 
seas  had  been,  for  some  years  past,  more  frequented  than   formerly, 


111 


482 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[D. 


that  smuggling  had  increased,  that  several  usurpations  prejudicial  to 
Spain  and  the  general  tranquillity  had  been  suffered  to  be  made,  they 
gave  orders  that  the  western  coasts  of  Spanish  America,  and  islands  and 
seas  adjacent,  should  be  more  frequently  navigated  and  explored. 

They  were  also  informed  that  several  Russian  vessels  were  upon  the 
point  of  making  commercial  establishments  upon  that  coast.  At  the  time 
that  Spain  demonstrated  to  Russia  the  inconveniences  attendant  upon 
such  encroachments,  she  entered  upon  the  negotiation  with  Russia,  upon 
the  supposition  that  the  R'.i  >  ian  navigators  of  the  Pacific  Ocean  had  no 
orders  to  make  establishments  within  the  limits  of  Spanish  America,  of 
which  the  Spaniards  wet  j  the.  first  possessors,  (limits  situated  within 
Prince  William's  Strait,)  ymrr  osely  to  avoid  all  dissensions,  and  in  order 
to  maintain  the  harmony  and  amity  which  Spain  wished  to  preserve. 

The  court  of  Russia  replied,  it  had  already  given  orders  that  its  sub- 
jects should  make  no  settlements  in  places  belonging  to  other  powers, 
and  that,  if  those  orders  had  been  violated,  and  any  had  been  made  in 
Spanish  America,  they  desired  the  king  would  put  a  stop  to  them  in  a 
friendly  manner.  To  this  pacific  languag?  on  the  part  of  Russia,  Spain 
observed  that  she  could  not  be  answerable  for  what  her  officers  might  do 
at  that  distance,  whose  general  orders  and  instructions  were,  not  to  permit 
any  settlements  to  be  made  by  other  nations  on  the  continent  of  Spanish 
America. 

Though  trespasses  had  been  made  by  the  English  on  some  of  the 
islands  of  those  coasts,  which  had  given  rise  to  similar  complaints  having 
been  made  to  the  court  of  London,  Spain  did  not  know  that  the  English 
had  ende''vored  to  make  any  settlements  on  the  northern  part  of  the 
Southern  Ocean,  till  the  commanding  officer  of  a  Spanish  ship,  in  the 
usual  tour  of  the  coasts  of  California,  found  two  American  vessels  in  St. 
Laurence,  or  Nootka  Harbor,  where  he  was  going  for  provisions  and  storey, 
These  vessels  he  permitted  to  proceed  on  their  voyage,  it  appearing,  from 
their  papers,  that  they  were  driven  there  by  distress,  and  only  came  in 
to  refit. 

He  also  found  there  the  Iphigenia,  from  Macao,  under  Portuguese 
colors,  which  had  a  passport  from  the  governor ;  and,  though  he  came 
manifestly  with  a  view  to  trade  there,  yet  the  Spanish  admiral,  when  he 
saw  his  instructions,  gave  him  leave  to  depart,  upon  his  signing  an  en< 
gagement  to  pay  the  value  of  the  vessel,  should  the  government  of  Mexico 
declare  it  a  lawful  prize. 

With  this  vessel  there  came  a  second,  which  the  admiral  detained, 
and,  a  few  days  after,  a  third,  named  the  Argonaut,  from  the  abore- 
mentioned  place.  The  captain  of  this  latter  was  an  Englishman.  He 
came  not  only  to  trade,  but  brought  every  thing  with  him  proper  to  form 
a  settlement  there,  and  to  fortify  it.  This,  notwithstanding  the  remon- 
strances of  the  Spanish  admiral,  he  persevered  in,  and  was  detained,  to- 
gether with  his  vessel. 

After  him  came  a  fourth  English  vessel,  named  the  Princess  Royal, 
and  evidently  for  the  eame  purposes.  She,  likewise,  was  detained,  and 
sent  to  Port  St.  Bias,  where  the  pilot  of  the  Argonaut  made  away  with 
himself. 

The  viceroy,  on  being  informed  of  these  particulars,  gave  orders  that 
the  captain  and  the  vessels  should  be  released,  and  that  they  should  have 
leave  to  refit,  without  declaring  them  a  lawful  prize ;  and  this  he  did,  on 


ill 

HI' 


».] 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


433 


account  of  the  ignorance  of  the  proprietors,  and  the  friendship  which 
subsisted  between  the  two  courts  of  London  and  Madrid. 

He  also  gave  them  leave  to  return  to  Macao  with  their  cargo,  aAer 
capitulating  with  them  in  the  same  manner  as  with  the  Portuguese  cap- 
tain, and  leaving  the  affair  to  be  finally  determined  by  the  Count  de 
Revillagigedo,  his  successor,  who  also  gave  them  their  liberty. 

As  soon  as  the  court  of  Madrid  had  received  an  account  of  the 
detention  of  the  first  English  vessel  at  Nootka  Sound,  and  before  that  of 
the  second  arrived,  it  ordered  its  ambassador  at  London  to  make  a  report 
thereof  to  the  English  minister,  which  he  did  on  the  10th  of  February 
last,  <md  to  require  that  the  parties  who  had  planned  these  expeditions 
should  be  punished,  in  order  to  deter  others  from  making  settlements  on 
territories  occupied  and  frequented  by  the  Spaniards  for  a  number  of  years. 

In  the  ambassador'!'!  memorial,  mention  was  only  made  of  the  Spanish 
admiral  that  commanded  the  present  armament,  having  visited  Nootka 
Souk'  .  in  1774,  though  that  harbor  had  been  frequently  visited,  both 
before  and  since,  with  the  usual  forms  of  taking  possession.  These  forms 
were  repeated  more  particularly  in  the  years  1755  and  1779,  all  along  the 
coasts  as  far  as  Prince  William's  Sound ;  and  it  was  these  acts  that  gave 
occasion  to  the  memorial  made  by  the  court  of  Russia,  as  has  been 
already  noticed. 

The  Spanish  ambassador  at  London  did  not  represent  in  this  memo- 
rial at  that  time,  that  the  right  of  Spain  to  these  coasts  was  conformable 
to  ancient  boundaries,  which  had  been  guarantied  by  England  at  the 
treaty  of  Utrecht,  in  the  reign  of  Charles  XL,  deemirg  it  to  be  unneces- 
sary ;  as  orders  had  been  given,  and  vessels  had  actually  been  seized  on 
those  coasts,  so  far  back  as  1693. 

The  answer  that  the  English  ministry  gave,  on  the  26th  of  February, 
WAS,  that  they  had  not  as  yet  been  informed  of  the  facts  stated  by  the 
ambassador,  and  that  the  act  of  violence,  mentioned  in  his  memorial, 
necessarily  suspended  any  discussion  of  the  claims  thereiu,  till  an  adequate 
atonement  had  been  made  for  a  proceeding  so  injurious  to  Great  Britain. 

In  addition  to  this  hp.ughty  languag'i  of  the  British  minister,  he  fur- 
ther added,  that  the  ship  must  in  the  first  place  be  restored ;  and  that, 
with  respect  to  any  future  stipulations,  it  would  be  necessary  to  wait  for  a 
more  full  detail  of  all  the  circumstances  of  this  affair. 

The  harsn  and  laconic  style  in  which  this  answer  was  given,  made  the 
court  of  Madrid  suspect  that  the  king  of  Great  Britain's  ministers  were 
forming  other  plans;  and  they  were  the  more  induced  to  think  so,  as 
there  were  reports  that  they  were  going  to  fit  out  two  fleets,  one  for  the 
Mediterranean  and  the  other  for  the  Baltic.  This,  of  course,  obliged 
Spain  to  increase  the  small  squadron  she  was  getting  ready  to  exercise' 
her  marine. 

The  court  of  Spain  then  ordered  her  ambassador  at  London  to  pre^ 
sent  a  memorial  to  the  British  ministry,  setting  forth  that,  though  the 
crown  of  Spain  had  an  indubitable  right  to  the  continent,  islands,  harbors, 
and  coasts,  of  that  part  of  the  world,  founded  on  treaties  and  immemorial 
possession,  yet,  as  the  viceroy  of  Mexico  had  released  the  vessels  that  were" 
detained,  the  king  looked  upon  the  affair  as  concluded,  without  entering' 
'nto  any  disputes  or  discussions  on  the  undoubted  rights  of  Spain ;  and,, 
uesiring  to  give  a  proof  of  his  friendship  for  Great  Britain,  he  should  rest 
satisfied  if  she  ordered  that  her  subjects,  in  future,  respected  those  rights. 


'nil 


i 


MU 


it'.'  ;i 


11  'i\\ 

I  .'il 


IK 


484 


PHOOrS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[D 


i    .; 


F' 


■;•■.  *■ 
I ) ' 


.* 


As  if  Spain,  in  this  ant^wer,  had  laid  claim  to  the  empire  of  that 
ocean,  though  she  only  spoke  of  what  belonged  to  her  by  treaties,  and  as 
if  it  had  been  so  grievous  an  o.Tence  to  terminate  this  affair  by  restitution 
of  the  only  vessel  which  was  then  known  to  have  been  taken,  it  excited 
such  clamor  and  agitation  in  the  Parliament  of  England,  that  the  jnost 
vigorous  preparations  for  war  have  been  commenced ;  and  tho-se  powers 
disinclined  to  peace  charge  Spain  with  designs  contrary  U>  lur  ^.nown 
principles  of  honor  and  probtfy,  as  well  as  to  the  tranquillity  of  i'^srope, 
which  the  Spanish  monarch  and  his  ministers  have  always  ha  i  in  vibvv 

While  England  wts  omployod  in  making  the  gro  itest  arm  ini  .nts  '.id 
preparations,  that  court  made  answer  to  the  Spnni'ih  ambaia.itior,  (upon 
the  5th  of  May,)  that  the  acts  of  violence  '  (immittecl  ngainst  'he  British 
flag  "  rendered  it  necessary  for  tliR  soveraiiTu  to  charge  his  lamister  at 
Madrid  to  reii'iw  the  reji'onstr  it«ces,  (bt'iii'  the  answer  of  England 
fi! ready  mentioned,)  and  to  rcqui/e  that  sutisiiiction  which  his  snajesty 
thought  he  had  an  indisputable  right  to  demand." 

To  this  was  added  a  declaration  rot  to  enter  fornially  into  the  matter 
iujtil  a  satisfactory  answer  was  obtained ;  "  and  at  the  sane  tiiae  tl 
meraorinl  ol'  S;>:iin  shoui<l  not  include  in  it  the  question  of  right;"  whicii 
formed  a  mx;  obsenfial  part  of  the  discussion. 

The  Briti-'i  ndaMtli^1  ration  ofTer,  in  the  same  answer,  to  take  the 
most  effectual  mul.  jiiicific  nn^i^ures,  that  the  English  subjects  shall  not 
act  "  against  thft  just  and  acknowledged  rights  of  Spain,  but  that  they 
cannot  at  present,  .nf  ede  to  the  pretensions  of  absolute  sovereignty,  com- 
merce, ari'.i  niivi^jation,  which  appeared  to  be  the  principal  object  of  the 
memorials  of  the  ambassador;  and  that  the  king  of  England  considers  it 
as  a  duty  incumbent  upon  him  to  protect  his  subjects  in  the.  enjoyment  of 
the  right  of  continuing  their  fishery  in  the  Pacific  Ocean." 

If  t!;is  pretension  is  found  to  trespass  upon  the  ancient  boundaries 
laid  down  in  the  reign  of  King  Charles  II.,  and  guarantied  by  England 
in  the  tresity  of  Utrecht,  as  Spain  believes,  it  appears  that  that  court  will 
have  good  reason  for  disputing  and  opposing  this  claim  ;  and  it  is  to  be 
hoped  that  the  equity  of  the  British  administration  will  suspend  and 
restrict  it  accordingly. 

In  consequence  of  the  foregoing  answer,  the  charge  d' of  aires  from  the 
court  of  London  at  Madrid  insisted,  in  a  memorial  of  the  16th  of  May, 
on  restitution  of  the  vessel  detained  at  Nootka,  and  the  property  therein 
contained ;  on  an  indemnification  for  the  losses  sustained,  and  on  a  repa- 
ration proportioned  to  the  injury  done  to  the  English  subjects  trading 
under  the  British  flag,  and  that  they  have  an  indisputable  right  to  the 
enjoyment  of  a  free  and  uninterrupted  navigation,  commerce,  and  fishery ; 
and  to  the  possession  of  such  establishments  as  they  should  form  with  the 
consent  of  the  natives  of  the  country,  not  previously  occupied  by  any  of 
the  European  nations. 

An  explicit  and  prompt  answer  was  desired  upon  this  head,  in  such 
terms  as  might  tend  to  calm  the  anxieties,  and  to  maintain  the  friendship, 
subsisting  between  the  two  courts. 

The  charge  (Vaffaires  having  observed  that  a  suspension  of  the 
Spanish  armaments  would  contribute  to  tranquillity,  upon  the  terms  to 
be  communicated  by  the  British  administration,  an  answer  was  made  by 
the  Spanish  administration,  that  the  king  was  sincerely  inclined  to  disarm 
upon  the  principles  of  reciprocity,  and  proportioned  to  the  circumstances 


D.] 


PBOOrS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


496 


of  the  two  courts ;  adding  that  the  court  of  Spain  was  actuated  by  the 
most  pacific  intentions,  and  a  denire  to  give  every  satisfaction  and  indem- 
nification, if  justice  was  not  on  their  side,  provided  England  did  as  much 
if  she  was  found  to  be  in  the  wrong. 

This  answer  must  convince  all  the  courts  of  Europe  that  the  conduct 
of  the  king  and  his  administration  is  consonant  to  the  invariable  principles 
of  justice,  truth,  and  peace. 

El  Condb  de  Flouda  Blanca. 


KA  tiL  t;ONDB  DE 


(4.) 

Letter  from  Count  de  Feman  NuHex,  the  Spanish  Ambassador  at  Paris, 
to  M.  de  Montmorin,  the  Secretary  of  the  Foreign  Department  of 
France. 

Paris,  June  16th,  1790. 
Sir, 

I  have  the  honor  to  address  you,  with  this,  a  faithful  extract  of 
all  the  transactions  which  have  hitherto  passed  between  my  court  and  that 
of  London,  on  the  subject  of  the  detention  oi'  two  English  vessels,  which 
were  seized  in  the  Bay  of  St.  Lawrence,  or  Nootka,  situated  in  the  60th 
degree  to  the  north  of  California,  and  which  were  afterwards  taken  to  the 
port  of  St.  Bias. 

You  will  observe  by  this  relation, 

1.  That,  by  the  treaties,  demarkations,  takings  of  possession,  and  the 
most  decided  acts  of  sovereignty  exercised  by  the  Spaniards  in  these 
stations,  from  the  reign  of  Charles  IL,  and  authorized  by  that  monarch  in 
1692,  the  original  vouchers  for  which  shall  be  brought  forward  in  the 
course  of  the  negotiation,  all  the  coast  to  the  north  of  the  Western  Amer- 
ica, on  the  side  of  the  South  Sea,  as  far  as  beyond  what  is  called  Prince 
William's  Sound,  which  is  in  the  61st  degree,  is  acknowledged  to  belong 
exclusively  to  Spain. 

2.  That  the  court  of  Russia,  having  been  informed  of  this  extent  of 
our  boundary,  assured  the  king,  my  master,  without  the  least  delay,  of 
the  purity  of'  its  intentions  in  this  respect,  and  added,  "  That  it  was 
extremely  sorry  that  the  repeated  orders  issued  to  prevent  the  subjects  of 
Russia  from  violating,  in  the  smallest  degree,  the  territory  belonging  to 
another  power,  should  have  been  disobeyed." 

3.  That  the  state  of  the  possessions  and  exclusive  commerce  on  the 
sea-coast  of  the  Southern  Ocean,  as  it  existed  in  the  time  of  Charles  IL, 
had  been  acknowledged  and  defined  anew  by  all  the  nations  of  Europe, 
and  more  particularly  by  England,  in  the  eighth  article  of  the  treaty 
of  Utrecht. 

4.  That,  notwithstanding  the  just  title  he  has  to  a  preservation  of  his 
ancient  rights,  the  king,  my  master,  has  approved  of  the '  conduct  of  the 
viceroy  of  Mexico,  who,  in  consequence  of  his  general  orders  and  instruc- 
tions for  the  preservation  of  peace  with  every  power,  took  upon  himself  to 
release  the  vessels  seized  in  the  port  of  Nootka,  upon  a  supposition  that 
the  conduct  of  their  captains  was  a  consequence  of  their  total  ignorance 
with  respect  to  the  legitimacy  of  the  rights  of  Spain  on  those  coasts. 

It  is  in  consequence  of  the  desire  of  his  Catholic  majesty  to  pre- 
serve peace  to  himself,  and  to  establish  the  general  tranquillity  of  Europe, 


:liKi 


496 


PKOOra   AMD   ILLVSTBATIOlfS. 


[D. 


that  he  hu  taken  the  steps  you  will  observe  in  the  said  extract,  and  that 
he  has  commenced  an  amicable  and  direct  negotiation  with  England, 
which  he  will  finish  with  Mr.  Fitzherbert,  the  new  ambassador  sent 
from  that  court  to  the  court  of  Madrid.  We  are  in  hopes  that  the  con- 
sequences of  this  negotiation  will  be  favorable ;  but,  at  the  same  time,  we 
must  employ  all  the  necessary  means  to  make  it  so. 

An  immediate  and  exact  accomplishment  of  the  treaty  signed  at  Paris, 
the  15th  of  August,  1761,  under  the  title  of  the  Family  Compact,  becomes 
an  indispensable  preliminary  to  a  successful  negotiation.  It  is  in  conse- 
quence of  the  absolute  necessity  which  Spain  finds  of  having  recourse  to 
the  succor  of  France,  that  the  king,  my  master,  orders  me  to  demand 
expressly  what  France  can  do  in  the  present  circumstances  to  assist 
Spain,  according  to  the  mutual  engagements  stipulated  by  the  trcHties. 
His  Catholic  majesty  desires  that  the  armaments,  as  well  as  other  proper 
measures  to  fulfil  and  realize  these  sacred  engagements,  be  immediately 
put  in  execution.  He  charges  me  to  add  further,  that  the  present  state 
of  this  unforeseen  business  requires  a  very  speedy  determination,  and  that 
the  measures  which  the  court  of  France  shall  take  for  his  assistance,  shall 
be  so  active,  so  clear,  and  so  positive,  as  to  prevent  even  the  smallest 
ground  for  suspicion.  Otherwise  his  most  Christian  majesty  must  not  be 
surprised  that  Spain  should  seek  other  friends  and  different  allies  among 
all  the  powers  of  Europe,  without  excepting  any  one,  upon  whose  assist- 
ance she  can  rely  in  case  of  need.  The  ties  of  blood  and  personal  friend- 
ship which  unite  our  two  sovereigns,  and  particularly  the  reciprocal 
interest  which  exist^  between  two  nations  united  by  nature,  shall  be 
respected  in  all  new  arrangements,  as  far  as  circumstances  will  permit. 

This,  sir,  is  the  positive  demand  which  I  am  obliged  to  make,  and  m 
consequence  of  which  I  hope  his  most  Christian  majesty  will  immediately 
take  such  measures  as  shall  seem  most  suitable,  in  the  present  circum- 
stances, to  satisfy  my  master,  in  an  object  so  interesting  and  important  to 
the  preservation  of  his  legal  rights,  and  the  honor  of  his  nation. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  &c.. 

El  Conde  db  Febnan  NuJSez. 


"ins 


(6.) 

Letter  from  Mr,  FitzJurhert  to  Count  de  Florida  Blanca. 


Sir, 


Madrid,  [probably,]  June  16th,  1790. 


In  coripliancs  with  your  excellency's  desire,  I  have  now  the 
honor  to  communicate  to  you,  in  writing,  what  I  observed  to  you  in  the 
conversation  we  had  the  day  before  yesterday. 

The  substance  of  these  observations  are  briefly  these :  — 
The  court  of  London  is  animated  with  the  most  sincere  desire  of 
terminating  the  difference  that  at  present  subsists  between  it  and  the 
court  of  Madrid,  relative  to  the  port  of  Nootka,  and  the  adjacent  lati- 
tudes, by  a  friendly  negotiation;  but  as  it  is  evident,  upon  the  clearest 
principles  of  justice  and  reason,  that  an  equsl  negotiation  cannot  be 
opened  till  matters  are  put  in  their  original  state,  and  as  certain  acts  have 
been  committed  in  the  latitudes  in  question  by  vessels  belonging  to  the 


D] 


PROOTS    AND    ILLCSTRATIOMS. 


487 


ro^al  marine  of  Spain,  against  several  British  vessels,  without  any  re- 
prisals havins  been  made,  of  any  sort,  on  the  part  of  Britain,  that  power  it 
perfectly  in  the  right  to  insist,  as  a  preliminary  condition,  upon  a  prompt 
and  suitable  reparation  for  these  acts  of  violence ;  and  in  consequence  of 
this  principle,  the  practice  of  nations  has  limited  such  riffht  of  i^paration 
to  three  articles,  viz.,  the  restitution  of  the  vessels  —  a  full  indemnification 
for  the  losses  sustained  by  the  parties  injured  —  and,  finally,  satisfaction  to 
the  sovereign  for  the  insult  offered  to  his  flag.  So  that  it  is  evident  that 
the  actual  demands  of  my  court,  far  from  containing  .my  thing  to  preju- 
dice the  rights  or  the  dignity  of  his  Catholic  majest} ,  amount  to  no  more, 
in  fact,  than  what  is  constantly  done  by  Great  Britain  herself,  as  well  as 
every  other  maritime  power,  in  similar  circumstances. — Finally,  as  to  the 
nature  of  the  satisfaction  which  the  court  of  London  exacts  on  this  occa- 
sion, and  on  which  your  excellency  appears  to  desire  some  explanation,  1 
am  authorized,  sir,  to  assure  you,  that  if  his  Catholic  majesty  consents  to 
make  a  declarat  v..:'  in  his  name,  bearing  in  substance  that  he  had  deter- 
mined to  offer  \o  .lis  Britannic  majesty  a  ji'st  and  suitable  satisfaction 
for  the  insult  offered  to  his  flag,  —  such  offar,  joined  to  a  promise  of 
making  restitution  of  the  vessels  captured,  and  to  indemnify  the  pro- 
prietors, under  the  conditions  sp  rifled  in  the  official  letter  of  Mr.  Merry 
on  the  16th  of  May,  will  be  regarded  by  his  Britannic  majesty  as  consti- 
tuting in  itself  the  satisfaction  demanded;  and  his  said  majesty  will  accept 
of  it  as  such  by  a  counter-declaration  on  his  part.  I  have  to  add,  that  as 
it  appears  uncertain  if  the  vessels  the  North-West,  an  American  vessel, 
and  the  Iphigenia,  had  truly  a  right  to  enjoy  the  protection  of  the  British 
flag,  the  king  will  with  pleasure  consent  that  an  examination  of  this  ques- 
tion, as  well  as  that  relative  to  the  just  amount  of  the  losses  sustained 
by  his  subjects,  may  be  left  to  the  determination  of  commissioners  to 
be  named  by  the  two  courts. 

Having  thus  recapitulated  to  your  e^tcellency  the  heads  of  what  I 
observed  to  you  in  conversation,  I  flatter  myself  you  will  weigh  the  whole 
in  your  mind,  with  that  spirit  of  equity  and  moderation  which  character- 
izes you,  that  I  may  be  in  a  condition  of  sending  to  my  court,  as  soon  as 
possible,  a  satisfactory  answer  as  to  the  point  contained  in  the  official 
paper  sent  to  Mr.  Merry,  on  the  4th  of  the  month,  and  which,  for  the 
reasons  I  have  mentioned,  cannot  be  regarded  by  his  Britannic  majesty 
as  fulfilling  his  just  expectations. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  d&c, 

Allevne  Fitzhbrbert. 


(6.) 


Letter  from  Count  de  Florida  Blanea  to  Mr.  Fitxherbert. 

Madrid,  June  18th,  1790. 

You  will  pardon  me,  sir,  that  I  cannot  give  my  assent  to  the  principles 
laid  down  in  your  last  letter;  as  Spain  maintains,  on  the  most  solid 
grounds,  that  the  detention  of  the  vessels  was  made  in  a  port,  upon  a 
coast,  or  in  a  bay,  of  Spanish  America,  the  commerce  and  navigation  of 
which  belonged  exclusively  to  Spain,  by  treaties  with  all  nations,  even 
England  herself. 


VA 


!;: 


PllOOra    AND    IMJTHTRATiniff. 


CPi 


. '  -i 


I 

I 

I 


.-.■it: 


The  principles  laid  down  cannot  be  adapted  to  the  case.  The 
VAiwels  detained  attempted  to  make  an  establishment  at  a  port  wherd 
they  found  a  nation  actually  settled,  the  Spanish  commander  at  Nootka 
having,  previ«.u8  to  their  detention,  made  the  most  amicable  represen- 
tations to  the  aggressors  to  desist  from  their  purpose. 

Your  excellency  will  also  permit  me  to  lay  before  you,  that  it  is  not 
at  all  certain  that  the  vessels  detained  navigated  under  the  Britinh  flag, 
although  they  were  English  vessels;  there  having  been  reason  to  believe 
that  they  navigated  under  the  protection  of  Fortugueae  pascports,  fur 
nished  them  by  the  governor  of  Macao  as  commercial  vessels,  and  not 
belonging  to  the  royal  marine.  Your  excellency  will  add  to  these  res* 
sons,  that,  by  the  restitution  of  these  vessels,  their  furniture  and  cargoes, 
or  their  value,  in  consequence  of  the  resolution  adopted  by  the  viceroy  of 
Mexico,  which  has  been  approved  of  by  the  king,  for  the  sake  of  peace, 
every  thing  is  placed  in  its  original  stite,  the  object  your  excellency  aims 
at  —  nothing  remaining  unsettled  but  the  indemnification  of  losses,  and 
satisfaction  for  the  insult,  which  shall  also  be  regulated  whea  evidence 
shall  be  given  what  insult  has  been  committed,  which  hitherto  has  not 
been  sufficiently  explained. 

However,  that  a  quarrel  may  not  arise  about  words,  and  that  two 
nations  friendly  to  each  other  may  not  be  exposed  to  the  calamities  of 
war,  I  have  to  inform  yon,  sir,  by  order  of  the  king,  that  his  majesty 
consents  to  make  the  declaration  which  your  excellency  proposes  in  your 
letter,  and  will  offer  to  his  Britannic  majesty  a  just  and  suitable  satisfac- 
tion for  the  insult  ofl<  red  to  the  honor  of  his  flag,  provided  that  to  these 
are  added  either  of  the  following  explanations : 

1.  That,  in  offering  such  satisfaction,  the  insult  and  the  satisfaction 
shall  be  fully  settled,  both  in  form  and  substance,  by  a  judgment  to  be 
pronounCv<;d  by  one  of  the  kings  of  Europe,  whom  the  king,  my  master, 
leaves  whoMy  to  the  choice  of  his  Britannic  majesty;  for  it  is  sufficient  to 
the  Spanish  monarch  that  a  crowned  head,  from  full  information  of  the 
facts,  shall  decide  as  he  thinks  jupt. 

2.  That,  it.  offering  a  just  and  suitable  satisfaction,  care  shall  be 
taken  that,  in  the  progress  of  the  negotiation,  to  be  opened,  no  facts  be 
admitted  as  true  but  such  as  can  be  fully  established  by  Great  Britain 
with  regard  to  the  insult  offered  to  her  flag. 

3.  That  the  said  satisfaction  shall  be  given  on  condition  that  no 
inference  be  drawn  therefrom  to  affect  the  rights  of  Spain,  nor  of  the 
right  of  exacting  from  Great  Britain  an  equivalent  satisfaction,  if  it  shall 
be  found,  in  the  course  of  negotiation,  that  the  king  has  a  right  to 
demand  satisfaction,  for  the  aggression  and  usurpation  made  on  the 
Spanish  territory,  contrary  to  subsisting  treaties. 

Your  excellency  will  be  pleased  to  make  choice  of  either  of  these 
three  explanations  to  the  declaration  your  excellency  proposes,  or  all  the 
three  together,  and  to  point  out  any  difficulty  that  occurs  to  you,  that 
it  may  be  obviated ;  or  any  other  mode  that  may  tend  to  promote  the 
peace  which  we  desire  to  establish. 

I  have  the  honor  to  be,  &.C., 

El  Conde  de  Florida  Blanca. 


D.J 


rBOOrS   AND   ILLUSTBATIOM. 


4S9 


(7.) 

Spanish  Declaration,  and  British   Counter-Declaration,  exchanged  at 
Madrid  on  the  34M  of  July,  1790. 

DECLARATION. 

His  Britannic  majesty  having  complained  of  the  capture  of  certain 
vessels  bclunging  to  his  subjects  in  the  port  of  Nootka,  situated  on  the 
north-west  coast  of  America,  by  an  officer  m  the  /service  of  the  king,  —  the 
undersigned  counsellor  and  principal  secretary  of  state  to  his  majesty, 
being  thereto  duly  authorized,  declares,  in  the  name  and  by  the  order  of 
his  said  majesty,  that  ho  is  willing  to  give  satisfaction  to  his  Britannic 
majesty  for  the  injury  of  which  he  has  complained,  fully  persuaded  that 
his  said  Britannic  majesty  would  act  in  the  same  manner  towards  the 
king,  under  similar  circumstances;  and  his  majeslv  further  engages  to 
make  full  restitution  of  all  the  British  vessels  which  were  captured  at 
Nootka,  and  to  indemnify  the  parties  interested  in  those  vessels,  for  the 
losses  which  they  shall  have  sustained,  as  soon  as  the  amount  thereof 
shall  have  been  ascertained. 

It  being  understood  that  this  declaration  is  not  to  preclude  or  preju- 
dice  the  ulterior  discussion  of  any  right  which  his  majesty  may  claim  to 
form  an  exclusive  establishment  at  the  port  of  Nootka. 

In  witness  whereof,  I  have  signed  this  declaration,  and  sealed  it  with 
the  seal  of  my  arms.     At  Madrid,  the  24th  of  July,  1790. 

(i..  B.)  Signed, 

Le  Cohte  de  Florida  Blanca. 


:  1 


f      ^\ 


COUNTER- DECLARATIo;;r. 

His  Catholic  majesty  having  declared  that  he  was  willing  to  give 
satisfaction  for  the  injury  done  to  the  king,  by  the  capture  of  certain 
vessels  belonging  to  his  subjects,  in  the  bay  of  Nootka,  and  the  Count  de 
Florida  Blanca  having  signed,  in  the  name  and  by  the  order  of  his  Catho- 
lic majesty,  a  declaration  to  this  effect,  and  by  which  his  said  majesty 
likewise  engages  to  make  full  restitution  of  the  vessels  so  captured,  and 
to  indemnify  the  parties  interested  in  those  vessels  for  the  losses  they  shall 
have  sustained, — the  undersigned  ambassador  extraordinary  and  plenipo- 
tentiary of  his  majesty  to  the  Catholic  king,  being  thereto  duly  and 
expressly  authorized,  accepts  the  said  declaration  in  the  name  of  the  kiri* 
and  declarv<;s  that  his  majesty  will  consider  this  declaration,  together  with 
the  performance  of  the  engagements  contained  therein,  as  a  full  and  entire 
satisfaction  for  the  injury  of  which  his  majesty  has  complained. 

The  undersigned  declares,  at  the  same  time,  that  it  is  to  be  under- 
stood, that  neither  the  said  declaration  signed  by  Count  Florida  Blanca, 
nor  the  acceptance  thereof  by  the  undersigned,  in  the  name  of  the  king, 
is  to  preclude  or  prejudice,  in  any  respect,  the  right  which  his  majesty 
may  claim  to  any  establishment  which  his  subjects  may  have  formed,  or 
should  be  desirous  of  forming  in  future,  at  the  said  bay  of  Nootka. 

In  witness  whereof,  I  have  signed  this  counter-declaration,  and  sealed 
it  with  the  seal  of  my  arms.     At  Madrid,  the  24th  of  July,  1790. 

(l.  ■.)  Signed, 

Alleynb  Fitzherbert. 


li     ri 


480 


PmOOrS    AND   ILLUaTBATIOMI. 


DR 


I  4 


f     ' 


(8.) 

Decree  of  the  National  Convtntion  of  France^  on  the  Smlntct  of  the 
Application  of  the  King  of  Spain  for  Aid  in  relisting  the  Demands 
oj  Great  Britain.     Paris,  August  fi/A,  1790. 

The  National  Aisembly,  deliberating  on  the  formal  proposition  of  the 
kinff,  contained  in  the  letter  of  the  minister,  dated  the  1st  of  August, 

Decree,  that  the  king  be  supplicated  to  make  known  to  his  Catholic 
majesty,  that  the  French  nation,  in  taking  all  proper  measures  to  muintain 
peace,  will  observe  the  defensive  and  commercial  engagements  which  the 
French  government  have  previously  contracted  with  Spain. 

They  further  decree  that  his  niiijesty  shall  be  requested  immediately 
to  charge  his  ambassador  in  Spain  to  ni>i;otiate  with  the  minister  of  his 
Catholic  majesty  to  the  effect  of  perpetuating  and  renewing,  by  a  national 
treaty,  the  ties  so  useful  to  the  two  nations,  and  to  iix  with  precision  and 
clearness  every  stipulation  which  shall  be  strictly  conformable  to  the 
iriews  of  general  peace,  and  to  the  principles  of  justice,  which  will  be 
forever  the  policy  of  the  French. 

The  National  Assembly  further  taking  into  consideration  the  arma- 
ments of  the  different  nations  of  Europe,  their  progressive  increase, 
and  the  safety  of  the  French  colonies  and  commerce,  decree,  that  the 
king  shall  be  piayed  to  give  orders  that  the  French  marine  force  in 
commission  shall  be  increased  to  forty-five  ships  of  the  line,  with  a 
proportionate  number  of  frigates  and  other  vessels. 


E. 


Documents    relative    to   the    Discovert   or    the    Coluubia 
River  bt   the   Spaniards   and   the    Americans. 

Extract  from  the  Report  of  Captain  Bruno  Heceta,  commanding  the 
Spanish  Corvette  Santiago,  in  a  Voyage  along  the  North-West  Coast 
of  America,  in  1775,  containing  the  Particulars  of  his  Discovery  of 
the  Mouth  of  the  Cheat  River,  since  called  the  Columbia.* 


original. 

El  dia  diez  y  siete,  [de  agosto,  1775,]  recorri  la  costa,  hasta  el  grado 
cuarenta  y  seis ;  y  vi  que  desde  la  latitud  de  cuarenta  y  siete  grades  y 

*  From  the  original  Rnport,  preserved  in  the  Hydrographical  Office  at  Madrid, 
copied  under  the  BupenriBion  of  Don  Martin  Fernandei  de  Navarate,  the  chief  of 
that  department,  whose  certificate  in  proof  of  its  authenticity  is  appended  to  the 
copy.  —  See  p.  120  of  this  History.  , 


IB 


JS.1 


PHOOri    AND    ILLUITRATIONI. 


481 


ject  of  th« 
le  Demands 


lition  of  the 

LugUBt, 

his  Catholic 

to  maintain 

ts  which  the 

immediately 
niHler  of  his 
by  a  national 
>reciBion  and 
nablo  to  the 
hich  will  be 

on  the  arma- 
ive  increase, 
iree,  that  the 
irine  force  in 
line,  with  a 


Columbia 

ICANS. 


ttmanding  the 

h-West  Coast 

Hscovery  of 


jiasta  el  grado 
liete  grados  y 

Fice  at  Madrid, 
|e,  the  chief  of 
Ippended  to  the 


ouarenta  minutos,  hasta  la  de  cuarentn  y  seis  gradoa  ouarenta  minatoa, 
oorria  al  ansulo  da  diez  y  echo,  en  el  segundo  ouadrante ;  y  deade  eata 
graduacion,  naata  la  de  ouarenta  j  aeia,  y  cuatro,  al  angulo  de  doce  del 
niismo  ouadrante,  v  con  la  misma  sonda,  playa  y  iVondoaidad,  y  algunoa 
islotea,  que  la  de  Ids  dias  anteriores. 

La  tard6  de  este  dia,  descubri  una  srande  bahia,  que  la  nombrft  de 
la  Asuncion ;  cuya  figura  representa  el  piano  que  va  interto  en  este  diario; 
au  latitud  y  amplitud  esta  sujeta  k  las  demarcaciones  mas  exactus  que 
ofrece  la  theorica  y  practica  de  esta  carrera. 

Las  latitudes  de  los  cabos  mas  salientea  de  dicha  bahia,  particularmente 
la  del  Norte,  esti  calculada  por  la  observacion  de  aquel  dia. 

Habiendola  llegado  k  ilanquear  k  las  seis  de  la  tarde,  y  cuasi  situada  la 
fra^ata  entre  loa  dos  Cabos,  sonde  en  veinte  y  cuatro  brazas,  y  eran  tan 
rapidoB  los  remolinos  de  las  corrientes,  que  no  obstante  haber  esforzado 
de  vela,  fu6  trabajoso  el  solir  6  seperarse  del  Cabo  de  mas  al  Norte,  que 
es  haoia  la  parte  donde  mas  se  inclinaba  la  corriente,  que  tambien  tenia 
su  direccion  al  este,  y  con  el  dependia  del  flujo  de  la  marea. 

Estas  corrientes  y  hervidcro  de  aguas  me  han  hecho  cr6er  sea  desem- 
bocadura  de  algun  gran  rio  6  paso  para  algun  otro  mar. 

Si  la  latitud  en  que  se  situo  la  bahia  no  tubiera  la  constanto  prueba  de 
la  observacion  de  aquel  dia  creeria  sin  diiicultad  era  este  el  paso  descubierto 
el  ano  de  1592  por  Juan  de  Fuca,  que  lo  situan  las  cartas  entre  los  gradoa 
de  cuarenta  y  ocho  grados  y  ouarenta  y  siete  de  latitud,  donde  no  me 
queda  duda,  no  se  halla  este  estrecho,  por  habor  estado  fondeado  el  dia 
catorce  de  Julio,  en  el  centro  de  estas  latitudes,  y  registrado  variaa  vecea 
todas  aquellas  inmediaciones. 

No  obstante  la  mucha  diferencia  de  la  situacion  de  esta  bahia,  y  el 
paso  que  cita  dc  Fuca,  se  mi  hace  poco  diiicultoso  el  dudar,  si  es  uno 
mismo ;  porque  he  observado,  hay  igual  variedad  6  mayor,  en  las  latitudes 
de  otros  cabos  y  puertos  de  eata  costa,  como  los  citare  4  su  tiempo ;  y  en 
todos,  es  mayor  la  latitud  en  que  los  fijan,  que  la  que  tiene  sus  verdaderaa 
situaciones. 

El  no  haber  entrado  y  fondeado  en  el  puerto,  que  parece  forma  la  que 
en  el  piano  supongo  isla,  no  obstante  los  vivos  deseoa  que  roe  asisten,  fue 
porque,  habiendo  tornado  parecer  del  segundo  Capitan  y  practico  Don 
Juan  Perez,  y  piloto  Don  Christoval  Revilla,  insistieron  en  que  no  debia 
executar,  porque,  de  dejar  caer  el  ancia,  no  teniamos  gente  con  que 
zarparia,  y  atender  a  la  faena,  que  de  esto  resulta.  Hecho  cargo  yo,  de 
estas  razones,  y  que  para  hacer  rumbo  al  fondeadero,  me  era  precise 
hechar  la  lancha  al  agua  (unica  embarcacion  menor  que  tenia)  esquif^rla 
con  catorce  individuos  de  la  tripulacion,  lo  menos,  y  que  sin  estos  no 
podia  empenarme,  notando  al  mismo  tiempo,  era  tarde,  resolvi  virar  para 
fuera;  y  hallandome  a  la  distancia  de  tres  6  cuatro  legnas,  hice  capa. 
Experiment^  esta  noche  vivas  corrientes  al  S.  O.  que  me  imposibilitaron 
intentar  recalar  en  esta  bahia,  la  manana  del  dia  siguiente,  por  estar 
muy  sotavento. 

Tambien  estas  me  hicieron  consentir,  en  que  en  el  reflujo,  salia  de 
aquella  bahia,  mucha  cantidad  de  aguas. 

Los  dos  Cabos  que  cito  en  el  piano,  de  San  Rogue  y  del  Frondoso 
corren  al  angulo  de  diez  grados  del  tercer  ouadrante ;  ambos  son  escar> 
pados  de  tierra  colorada  con  poca  elevacion. 

El  dia  dies  y  ocho,  demarque  el  Cabo  Frondoso  que  cito,  con  otro  que 


432 


PROOFS   AND   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[E. 


le  pus6  per  nombre  de  Falcon,  situado  en  la  latitud  de  cuarenta  y  cinco 
grados  cuarenta  y  tres  minutos ;  y  corria  al  angulo  de  veinte  y  dos  grados 
del  tercer  cuadrante ;  y  desde  este  cabo  sigue  la  costa,  al  angulo  de  cinco 
grados,  del  segundo  cuadrante. 

Esta  es  de  tierra  montuosa,  no  muy  elevada,  ni  tan  poblada  de  arboleda, 
como  la  que  induce  los  grados  desde  la  latitud  de  cuarenta  y  ocho,  treinta, 
hasta  los  cuarenta  y  seis. 

En  la  sonda,  encontre  notable  diferencia;  pues  a  distaiicia  de  siete 
leguas,  sonde  en  ochenta  y  cuatro  brazas,  y  acercandome  k  la  costa,  no 
halle  algunas  veces  sonda ;  lo  que  me  ha  hecho  creer,  hay  algunos  placeres 
6  bancos  de  arena,  sobre  estas  costas,  pues  tambien  el  color  de  las  aguas 
lo  denota  asi.  En  algunas  partes,  acaba  la  costa  en  playa,  y  en  otros 
acantilada. 

Una  montaiia  plana,  que  la  llame  de  Mesa,  hara  que  qualquier  navegante 
se  haga  capaz  de  la  situacion  del  Cabo  Falcon,  aunque  no  haya  tenido 
observacion;  por  que  esta  en  la  latitud  de  cuarenta  y  cinco  veinte  y  ocho 
minutos,  v  se  deja  ver  de  lejos  por  ser  medianamente  alta. 


TRANSLATION. 

On  the  17th  [oi  August,  1775]  I  sailed  along  the  coast  to  the  46th 
degree,  and  observed  that,  from  the  latitude  of  47  degrees  4  minutes 
to  that  of  46  degrees  40  minutes,  it  runs  in  the  angle  of  18  degrees  of  the 
second  quadrant,*  and  from  that  latitude  to  46  degrees  4  minutes,  in  the 
angle  of  12  degreed  of  the  same  quadrant ;  the  soundings,  the  shore,  the 
wooded  character  of  the  country,  and  the  little  islands,  being  the  same  as 
on  the  preceding  days. 

In  the  evening  of  this  day,  I  discovered  a  large  bay,  to  which  I  gave 
the  name  of  Assumption  Bay,  and  of  which  a  plan  will  be  found  in  this 
journal.  Its  latitude  and  longitude  are  determined  according  to  the  most 
exact  means  afforded  by  theory  and  practice. 

The  latitudes  of  the  two  most  prominent  capes  of  this  bay,  especially 
of  the  northern  one,  are  calculated  from  the  observations  of  this  day.f 

Havingr  arrived  opposite  this  bay  at  six  in  the  evening,  and  placed  the 
ship  nearly  midway  between  the  two  capes,  I  sounded,  and  found  bottom 
in  twenty-four  brazas  ;1l.  the  currents  and  eddies  were  so  strong  that, 
notwithstanding  a  press  of  sail,  it  was  difficult  to  get  out  clear  of  the  north- 
ern cape,  towards  which  the  current  ran,  though  its  direction  was  east- 
ward, in  consequence  of  the  tide  being  at  flood. 

These  currents  and  eddies  of  the  water  caused  me  to  believe  that  the 
place  is  the  mouth  of  some  great  river,  or  of  some  passage  to  another  sea. 


*  The  card  of  the  Spanish  compass  was  formerly  divided  into  four  quadrants,  on 
which  the  points  were  counted  by  degrees. 

t  In  the  table  accompanying  the  report,  the  position  of  the  vessel  is  given  on  the 
17th  of  August,  as  in  latitude  of  46  degrees  17  minutes,  which  is  within  one  minute  of 
the  latitude  of  Cape  Disappointment,  (the  Cape  San  Roque  of  Heceta,)  the  northern 
point,  at  the  entrance  o^  tne  Columbia ;  the  longitude  is  made  15  degrees  38  minutes 
west  of  Cape  San  Lucas,  the  southern  extremity  of  California,  wnich  is  about  a 
degree  and  a  half  too  far  west,  yet  remarkably  near  the  truth,  considering  that 
the  Spanish  navigator  was  obliged  to  depend  entirely  on  the  dead  reckoning  for 
his  longitudes. 

V  The  Spanish  braza,  or  fathom,  contains  six  Spanish  feet,  nearly  equal  to  five  fett 
nine  inches  English. 


[E. 

nta  y  cinco 

dos  grados 

ilo  de  cinco 

le  arboleda, 
cho,  treinta, 

cia  de  siete 
la  costa,  no 
nos  placeres 
de  las  aguas 
i,  y  en  otros 

er  navegante 

haya  tenido 

reinte  y  ocho 


t  to  the  46th 
es  4  minutes 
degrees  of  the 
linutes,  in  the 
the  shore,  the 
ig  the  same  as 

which  I  gave 

found  in  this 

[)g  to  the  most 

(ay,  especially 
Ithis  day.t 
Ind  placed  the 
found  bottom 
strong  that, 
[r  of  the  north- 
[tion  was  east- 

klieve  that  the 

10  another  sea. 

Lr  quadrania,  on 

11  is  given  on  the 
In  one  minute  of 
la,)  the  northern 
IgreeB  38  minutes 
Ihich  is  a'jout  a 
IconBidering  that 
Id  reckoning  for 

equal  to  five  fe«t 


a] 


PBOOya   AND   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


433 


4^> 

n 


Had  I  not  been  certain  of  the  latitude  of  this  bay,  from  my  ol^serrations 
of  the  same  day.  I  might  easily  have  believed  it  io  be  the  passage  dis- 
covered by  Juau  de  Fuca,  in  1592,  which  is  placed  on  the  charts  between 
the  47th  and  the  4Sth  degrees;  where  I  am  certain  that  no  such  strait 
exists ;  because  I  anchored  on  the  14th  of  July  midway  between  these 
two  latitudes,  and  carefully  examined  every  thing  around. 

Notwithstanding  the  great  difference  between  the  position  of  thus  bay 
arid  the  passage  mentioned  by  De  Fuca,  I  have  little  difficulty  in  oon- 
ceiving  that  they  may  be  the  same,  having  observed  equal  or  greater 
differences  in  the  latitudes  of  other  capes  and  ports  on  this  coast,  as  I 
shall  show  at  its  proper  time ;  and  in  all  cases  the  latitudes  thus  assigned 
are  higher  than  the  real  ones. 

I  did  not  enter  and  anchor  in  this  port,  which  in  my  plan  I  suppose 
to  be  formed  by  an  island,  notwithstanding  my  strong  desire  to  do  so; 
because,  having  consulted  the  second  captain,  Don  Juan  Perez,  and  the 
pilot,  Don  Christoval  Revilla,  they  insisted  that  I  ought  not  to  attempt  it, 
as,  if  we  let  go  the  anchor,  we  should  not  have  men  enough  to  get  it  up, 
and  to  attend  to  the  other  operations  which  would  be  thereby  rendered 
necessary.  Considering  this,  and  also  that,  in  order  to  reach  the  anchor- 
age, I  should  be  obliged  to  lower  my  long-boat,  (the  only  boat  that  I  had,) 
and  to  man  it  with  at  least  fourteen  of  the  crew,  as  I  could  not  manage  with 
fewer,  and  also  that  it  was  then  late  in  the  day,  I  resolved  to  put  out ;  and 
at  the  distance  of  three  or  four  leaguee;  I  lay  to.  In  the  course  of  that 
night,  I  experienced  heavy  currents  to  the  south-west,  which  made  it 
impossible  for  me  to  enter  the  bay  on  the  following  morning,  as  I  was 
far  to  leeward. 

These  currents,  however,  convinced  me  that  a  great  quantity  of  water 
rushed  from  this  bay  on  the  ebb  of  the  tide. 

The  two  capes  which  I  name  in  my  plan  Cape  San  Roque  *  and  Cape 
FrondosOff  lie  in  the  angle  of  ten  degrees  of  the  third  quadrant.  They 
are  both  faced  with  red  earth,  and  are  of  little  elevation. 

On  the  18th,  I  observed  Cape  Frondoso,  with  another  cape,  to  which 
I  gave  the  name  of  Cape  Falcon,  X  situated  in  the  latitude  of  45  degrees 
43  minutes,  and  they  lay  at  the  angle  of  22  degrees  of  the  third  quadrant, 
and  from  the  last-mentioned  cape  I  traced  the  coast  running  in  the  angle 
of  five  degrees  of  the  second  quadrant. 

This  land  is  mountainous,  but  not  very  high,  nor  so  well  wooded  an 
that  lying  between  the  latitudes  of  48  degrees  30  minutee,  and  46  degrees. 

On  sounding,  I  found  great  differences :  at  the  distvinoe  of  7  leagues, 
I  got  bottom  at  84  brazas ;  and  nearer  the  coast,  I  sometimes  found  no 
bottom;  from  which  I  am  inclined  to  believe  that  there  are  reefs  or 
shoals  on  these  coasts,  which  is  also  shown  by  the  color  of  the  water.  In 
some  places,  the  coast  presents  a  beach,  in  others  it  is  rocky. 

A  flat-topped  mountain,  which  I  named  The  Table,^  will  enable  any  nav- 
igator to  know  the  position  of  Cape  Falcon  without  observing  it ;  as  it  is 
in  the  latitude  of  45  degrees  28  minutes,  and  may  be  seen  at  a  great  di»> 
tance,  being  somewhat  elevated. 


*  Cape  Disappointment, 
t  Cape  Adama. 
55 


i  Cape  Lookout. 

§  Charke's  Point  of  View. 


I     il 


!  Rill 


434 


\i 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[E. 


(2.) 

Extract  from  the  Second  Volume  of  the  Log-Book  of  the  Ship  Columbia, 
of  Boston,  commanded  by  Robert  Gray,  containing  the  Account  of 
,  her  Entrance  into  the  Columbia  River,  in  May,  1792.* 

May  7th,  1792,  A.  M.  —  Being  within  six  miles  of  the  land,  saw  an 
entrance  in  the  same,  which  had  a  very  good  appearance  of  a  harbor; 
lowered  away  the  jolly-boat,  and  went  in  search  of  an  anchoring-place, 
the  ship  standing  to  and  fro,  with  a  very  strong  weather  current.  At  one, 
P.  M.,  the  boat  returned,  having  found  no  place  where  the  ship  could 
anchor  with  safety ;  made  sail  on  the  ship ;  stood  in  for  the  shore.  We 
soon  saw,  from  our  mast-head,  a  passage  in  between  the  sand-bars.  At 
half  past  three,  bore  away,  and  ran  in  north-east  by  east,  having  from  four 
to  eight  fathoms,  sandy  bottom ;  and,  as  we  drew  in  nearer  between  the 
bars,  had  from  tea  to  thirteen  fathoms,  having  a  very  strong  tide  of  ebb  to 
stem.  Many  oanoes  came  alongside.  At  five,  P.  M.,  came  to  in  five 
fathoms  water,  sandy  bottom,  in  a  safe  harbor,  well  sheltered  from  the 
sea  by  long  sand-bars  and  spits.  Our  latitude  observed  this  day  was 
46  degrees  58  minutes  north. 

May  10th.  —  Fresh  breezes  and  pleasant  weather ;  many  natives  along- 
side ;  at  noon,  all  the  canoes  lefl  us.  At  one,  P.  M.,  began  to  unmoor, 
took  up  the  best  bower-anchor,  and  hove  short  on  the  small  bower-anchor. 
At  half  past  four,  (being  high  water,)  hove  up  the  anchor,  and  came  to 
sail  and  a  beating  down  the  harbor. 

May  llth.  —  At  half  past  seven,  we  were  out  clear  of  the  bars,  and 
directed  our  course  to  the  southward,  along  shore.  At  eight,  P.  M.,  the 
entrance  of  Bulfinch's  Harbor  bore  north,  distance  four  miles ;  the  south- 
ern extremity  of  the  land  bore  south-south-east  half  east,  and  the  northern 
north-north-west ;  sent  up  the  main-top-gallant-yard  and  set  all  sail.  At 
four,  A.  M.,  saw  the  entrance  of  our  desired  port  bearing  east-south-east, 
distance  six  leagues ;  in  steering  sails,  and  hauled  our  wind  in  shore.  At 
eight,  A.  M.,  being  a  little  to  windward  of  the  entrance  of  the  Harbor, 
bore  away,  and  run  in  east-north-east  between  the  breakers,  having  from 
five  to  seven  fathoms  of  water.  When  we  were  over  the  bar,  we  found 
this  to  be  a  lar^a  river  of  fresh  water,  up  which  we  steered.  Many  canoes 
came  alongside.  At  one,  P.  M.,  came  to  with  the  small  bower,  in  ten 
fathoms,  black  and  white  sand.  The  entrance  between  the  bars  bore 
west-south-west,  distant  ten  miles ;  the  north  side  of  the  river  a  half  mile 
distant  from  the  ship ;  the  south  side  of  the  same  two  and  a  half  miles' 
distance;  a  village  on  the  north  side  of  the  river  west  by  north,  distant 
three  quarters  of  a  mile.  Vast  numbers  of  natives  came  alongside; 
people  employed  in  pumping  the  salt  water  out  of  our  water-casks,  in 
order  to  fill  with  fresh,  while  the  ship  floated  in.     So  ends. 

May  12<A.  —  Many  natives  alongside ;   noon,  fresh  wind ;   let  go  the 

*  This  extract  was  made  in  1816,  by  Mr.  Bulfinch,  of  Boston,  ont  of  the  owners  of 
the  Columbia,  from  the  second  volume  of  the  log-book,  which  was  then  in  the  pos- 
session of  Captain  Gray's  heirs,  but  has  since  disappeared.  It  has  been  frequently 
Sublished  in  newspapers  and  reports  to  Congress,  accompanied  by  the  affidavit  of  Mr. 
lulfinch  to  its  exactness.  —  See  p.  236  of  the  History. 


[E. 


lumbiot 
unt  of 


saw  an 

harbor ; 
ig-place, 

At  one, 
in  could 
re.  We 
lars.  At 
from  four 
ween  the 
of  ebb  to 
to  in  five 

from  the 
I  day  was 

ves  along- 
3  unmoor, 
rer-anchor. 
d  came  to 

s  bars,  and 
P.  M.,  the 
the  south- 
le  northern 
|l  sail.     At 
•south-east, 
[shore.    At 
[he  Harbor, 
laving  from 
we  found 
any  canoes 
rer,  in  ten 
bars  bore 
a  half  mile 
half  miles' 
»rth,  distant 
alongside ; 
■r-casks,  in 

let  go  the 

Ihe  owners  of 
n  in  the  pos- 
tn  frequently 
'Bdavit  of  Mr. 


E.] 


PROOFS    AND   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


435 


best  bower-anchor,  and  veered  out  on  both  cables ;  sent  down  the  main- 
top-gallant-yard; filled  up  all  the  water-casks  in  the  hold.  The  latter 
part,  heavy  gales,  and  rainy,  dirty  weather. 

May  I3th.  —  Fresh  winds  and  rainy  weather;  many  natives  along- 
side; hove  up  the  best  bower-anchor;  seamen  and  tradesmen  at  their 
various  departments. 

May  I4th.  —  Fresh  gales  and  cloudy;  many  natives  alongside;  at 
noon,  weighed  and  came  to  sail,  standing  up  the  river  north-east  by  east; 
we  found  the  channel  very  narrow.  At  four,  P.  M.,  we  had  sailed  up- 
wards of  twelve  or  fifteen  miles,  when  the  channel  was  so  very  narrow 
that  it  was  almost  impossible  to  keep  in  it,  having  from  three  to  eighteen 
fathoms  water,  sandy  bottom.  At  half  past  four,  the  ship  took  ground, 
but  she  did  not  stay  long  before  she  came  off,  without  any  assistance. 
We  backed  her  off,  stern  foremost,  into  three  fathoms,  and  let  go  the 
small  bower,  and  moored  ship  with  kedge  and  hawser.  The  jolly-boat 
was  sent  to  sound  the  channel  out,  but  found  it  not  navigable  any  farther 
up ;  so,  of  course,  we  must  have  taken  the  wrong  channel.  So  ends, 
with  rainy  weather;  many  natives  alongside. 

May  15th.  —  Light  airs  and  pleasant  weather;  many  natives  from 
different  tribes  came  alongside.  At  ten,  A.  M.,  unmoored  and  dropped 
down  with  the  tide  to  a  better  anchoring-place ;  smiths  and  other  trades- 
men constantly  employed.  In  the  afternoon.  Captain  Gray  and  Mr.  Hos- 
kins,  in  the  jolly-boat,  went  on  shore  to  take  a  short  view  of  the  country. 

May  I6th.  —  Light  airs  and  cloudy.  At  four,  A.  M.,  hove  up  the 
anchor  and  towed  down  about  three  miles,  with  the  last  of  the  ebb-tide ; 
came  into  six  fathoms,  sandy  bottom,  the  jolly-boat  sounding  the  channel. 
At  ten,  A.  M.,  a  fresh  breeze  came  up  river.  With  the  first  of  the  ebb- 
tide we  got  under  way,  and  beat  down  river.  At  one,  (from  its  being 
very  squally,)  we  came  to,  about  two  miles  from  the  village,  {Chinouk,) 
which  bore  west-south-west ;  many  natives  alongside ;  fresh  gales  and 
squally. 

May  17th.  —  Fresh  winds  and  squally ;  many  canoes  alongside ;  calk- 
ers  calking  the  pinnace ;  seamen  paying  the  ship's  sides  with  t:'x ;  painter 
painting  ship ;  smiths  and  carpenters  at  their  departments. 

May  18th.  —  Pleasant  weather.  At  four  in  the  morning,  began  to 
heave  ahead;  at  half  past,  came  to  sail,  standing  down  river  with  tiie  ebb- 
tide ;  at  seven,  (being  slack  water  and  the  wind  fluttering,)  we  came  to  in 
five  fathoms,  sandy  bottom ;  the  entrance  between  the  bars  bore  south- 
west by  west,  distant  three  miles.  The  north  point  of  niii  harbor  bore 
north-west,  distant  two  miles ;  the  south  bore  south-east,  distant  three  and 
a  half  miles.  At  nine,  a  breeze  sprung  up  from  the  eastward :  took  up 
the  anchor  and  came  to  sail,  but  the  wind  soon  came  fluttering  again ; 
came  to  with  the  kedge  and  hawser;  veered  out  fift,y  fathoms.  Noon, 
pleasant.  Latitude  observed,  46  degrees  17  minutes  north.  At  one, 
came  to  sail  with  the  first  of  the  ebb-tide,  and  drifted  down  broadside, 
with  light  airs  and  strong  tide ;  at  three  quarters  past,  a  fresh  wind  came 
from  the  northward;  wore  ship,  and  stood  into  the  river  again.  At  four, 
came  to  in  six  fathoms;  good  holding-ground  about  six  or  seven  miles 
up;  many  canoes  alongside. 

May  19th.  —  Fresh  wind  and  clear  weather.  Early  a  number  of 
canoes  came  alongside ;  seamen  and  tradesmen  employed  in  their  various 
departments.     Captain  Gray  gave  this  river  the  name  of  Columbia's 


I 


i  i 
''II   t 
iifi    ■ 


i  i  l':! 


436 


PROOFS    AND    IliLVSTRATIONS. 


[r. 


y 

■•i 

I 


River,  and  the  north  side  of  fhe  entrince  Cape  Hancock;  the  south, 
Adams's  Point. 

May  20M.  — Gentle  breezes  '•nd  pleasant  weather.  At  one,  P.  M., 
(being  full  sea,)  took  up  the  anchor,  and  made  sail,  standing  down  river. 
At  two,  the  wind  left  us,  we .  being  on  the  bar  with  a  very  strong  tide, 
which  set  on  the  breakers;  it  was  now  not  possible  to  get  out  without  a 
breeze  to  shoot  her  across  the  tide ;  so  we  were  obliged  to  bring  up  in 
three  and  a  half  fathoms,  the  tide  running  five  knots.  At  three  quarters 
past  two,  a  fresh  wind  came  in  from  seaward ;  we  immediately  came  to 
sail,  and  beat  over  the  bar,  having  from  five  to  seven  fathoms  water  in  the 
channel.  At  five,  P.  M.,  we  were  out,  clear  of  all  the  bars,  and  in  twenty 
fathoms  water.  A  breeze  came  from  the  southward ;  we  bore  away  to 
the  northward ;  set  all  sail  to  the  best  advantage.  At  eight,  Cape  Han- 
cock bore  south-east,  distant  three  leagues ;  the  north  extremity  of  the  land 
in  sight  bore  north  by  west.  At  nine,  in  steering  and  top-gallant  sails. 
Midnight,  light  airu. 

Mai;  21sf.  —  At  six,  A.  M.,  the  nearest  land  in  sight  bore  east^south- 
east,  distant  eight  leagues.  At  seven,  set  top-gallant-sails  and  light  stay- 
sails. At  eleven,  set  steering-sails  fore  and  aft.  Noon,  pleasant,  agree- 
able weather.  The  entrance  of  Bulfinch's  Harbor  bore  south-east  by  east 
half  east,  distant  five  leagues. 


Showing  that  the  Forty-ninth  Parallel  op  LATiTtrsE  was 
not  selected  as  the  line  op  separation  between  the 
French  and  the  British  Territories  in  North  Abterica, 
BY  Commissaries  appointed  agreeably  to  the  Treaty  of 
Utrecht.* 


mm 


Mr.  Monrot!,  minister  plenipotentiary  of  the  United  States  in  Lundon, 
in  his  letter  of  September  5th,  1804,  to  Lord  Harrowby,  the  British  secre- 
tary for  foreign  affaiirs.t  makes  the  following  statement  with  regard  to  the 
adoption  of  the  49th  parallel  of  latitude  as  the  northern  boundary  of  Lou- 
isiana :  — 

"  By  the  tenth  article  of  the  treaty  of  Utrecht,  it  is  agreed  that  'France 
shall  isstore  to  Great  Britain  the  Bay  and  Straits  of  Hudson,  together  with 
all  the  lands,  seas,  sea-coasts,  rivers,  and  places,  situate  in  the  said  bay 
and  straits,  which  belong  thereto ;  and  it  is  also  agreed,  on  both  sides,  to 
determine,  -vithin  a  year,  by  commissaries  to  be  forthwith  numed  by  each 
party,  tho  Ihnita  which  are  to  be  fixed  between  the  said  Bay  of  Hudson 
and  the  place:;  appertaining  to  the  French,  which  limits  both  the  British 
and  French  subjects  shall  be  wholly  forbid  to  pass  over,  or  thereby  to  go 
to  each  other,  by  sea  or  by  land  :  the  same  commissioners  shall  als'^  have 
orders  to  describe  and  settle  in  like  manner  the  Voundarie;^  between  the 


•  Se'>  p.  282  of  the  History. 

t  Communicated  to  Conirress,  and  published  with  Preiident  Jefferson'i  menage  of 
March  30th,  1808. 


p.] 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


4a7 


other  British  and  French  colonies  in  those  parts.'  Commissaries  were 
accordingly  appointed  by  each  power,  who  executed  the  stipulations  of 
the  treaty,  in  establishing  the  boundaries  proposed  by  it.  They  fixed  the 
northern  boundaf}'  of  Canada  and  Louisiana  by  a  line  beginning  on  the 
Atlantic,  at  a  cape  or  promontory  in  58  degrees  ?0  minutes  north  latitude, 
thence  south-westwardly  to  the  Lake  Mistissin,  thence  farther  south'wnst 
to  the  latitude  of  40  degrees  north  from  the  equator,  and  alonor  that  line 
indefinitely." 

Mr.  Monroe  does  not  give  his  authority  for  the  assertion  respecting  the 
adoption  of  this  line  b';  the  commissaries;  he,  however,  most  probably 
derived  his  information  from  the  map  of  America  attached  to  Poaile- 
thwayt's  Dictionary  of  Commerce,  published  in  1751,  to  which  he  alludes 
in  other  parts  of  his  correspondence,  and  in  which  a  line  appears  nearly 
as  described  by  him,  with  a  note  on  the  map,  saying,  "  The  line  that  parts 
French  Canada  from  British  Canada  was  settled  by  commissaries,  after 
the  peace  of  Utrecht,  making  a  curve  from  Davis's  Inlet,  in  the  Atlantic 
Sea,  down  to  the  4:9th  degree,  through  Lake  Abitibis,  to  the  North-West 
Ocean."  In  the  Dictionary  to  which  this  map  is  attached,  the  limits  of 
these  territories  are  ex"TessIy  declared  to  be  undetermined.  The  map  of 
North  America,  by  Palairet  and  Delaroche,  published  at  London  in  1765, 
also  gives  the  same  line,  without  any  note  as  to  the  manner  in  which  it 
was  adopted.  In  the  map  of  the  British  Possessions  in  America,  pub- 
lished by  Bowen  and  Gibson  in  1775,  and  in  one  or  two  other  inferior 
maps,  the  49th  parallel  is  given  as  the  southern  limit  of  the  Hudson's 
Bay  Company's  territories,  from  the  vicinity  of  Lake  Superior,  westward 
to  Red  River,  down  which  the  boundary  is  continued  to  Lake  Winnipeg. 
These  are  the  only  authorities,  as  yet  discovered,  for  the  belief  that  the 
49th  parallel  was  adopted  as  a  boundary  by  commissaries  appointed  ac- 
cording to  the  treaty  of  Utrecht. 

On  the  other  hand,  Mitchell's  great  map  of  America,  published  in 
1755  at  London,  under  the  patronage  of  the  colonial  department,  presents 
a  line  drawn  around  Hudson's  Bay,  at  the  distance  of  about  one  hundred 
and  fifty  miles  from  its  shore,  as  *'  the  bounds  of  Hudson's  Bay  by  the 
treaty  of  Utrecht ; "  and  the  same  line  appears  on  the  map  of  America 
accompanying  Smollett's  History  of  England,  published  in  1760,  on  that 
of  Bennet,  published  in  1770,  on  that  of  Faden,  in  1777,  and  on  some 
other  maps  of  that  period. 

No  line  of  separation  whatsoever,  between  the  Hudson's  Bay  territories 
and  the  French  possessions  in  America,  is  to  be  found  on  the  large  and 
beautiful  map  of  America  by  Henry  Popple,  published  in  1738,  also  under 
the  patronage  of  the  colonial  department,  and  bearing  the  stamp  of  the 
approbation  of  Dr.  Halley,  which  is  particularly  minute  in  all  that  relates 
to  the  territories  in  question ;  or  on  any  of  the  maps  in  the  atlas  of  Max- 
well and  Senex,  published  in  1721,  or  in  any  of  those  attached  to  the 
volume  of  Boyer's  Political  State  for  1721  —  to  the  History  of  Hudson's 
Bay,  by  Dobbs  —  to  the  American  Traveller,  by  Cluny  —  to  the  History 
of  the  British  Empire  in  America,  by  Wynne  —  to  Alcedo's  Dictionary 
of  America,  or  on  many  other  maps,  of  inferior  merit,  which  might  be 
named. 

These  d  repancies  should  not  excite  surprise;  for  maps,  and  books 
of  geograf'  j,  which  are  most  frequently  consulted  in  relation  to  bounda- 
ries, are,  or  rather  have  been,  the  very  worst  authorities  on  such  subjects ; 


f! 


ill 


•'     u'l 


1  ri'h 


438 


PROOrS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[F. 


as  they  are  ordinarily  made  by  persons  wholly  unacquainted  with  political 
affairs.  Of  this,  numerous  examples  may  be  cited  from  works  of  authors 
the  most  highly  esteemed  as  geographers,  even  at  the  present  day.* 

No  allusion  whatsoever  to  the  settlement  of  any  boundary  line  between 
the  Hudson's  Bay  territories  and  the  French  dominions,  by  commissaries 
appointed  agreeably  to  the  treaty  of  l/trecht,  is  to  be  found  in  any  of  the 
following  works,  which  have  been  carefully  examined  with  reference  to 
this  question :  viz.  —  Actes,  Memoires,  &c.,  concernant  la  Paix  d'Utrecht, 
a  voluminous  work,  published  in  1716  —  Actes,  Negotiations,  &c.,  depuis 
la  Paix  d'Utrecht,  1745  —  the  collections  of  treaties  and  state  papers  by 
Lumont,  Boyer,  Martens,  Jenkinson,  and  Herstlet  —  Collection  des  Edits, 
Ordonnances,  &c.,  concernant  le  Canada  —  the  histories  of,  and  memoirs 
on,  Louisiana,  by  Dumont,  Le  Page  Dupratz,  Vergennes,  Marbois,  and 
others  —  Memoires  des  Commissaires  Francais  et  Anglais,  sur  les  Pos- 
sessions, &c.,  des  deux  Couronnes  en  Amerique,  1754  —  the  works  of 
Swift  and  of  Bolingbroke  —  the  Parliamentary  History  of  England  —  and 
the  Histories  of  England  by  Tindal,  SmoUet,  Belsham,  Mahon,  or  Wade. 

This  is  strong  negative  evidence.  Anderson,  in  bi^  elaborate  History 
of  Commerce,  (vol.  iii.  p.  267,)  thus  pointedly  denies  that  any  such  set- 
tlement of  limits  was  effected  agreeably  to  the  provisions  of  the  treaty  of 
Utrecht:  "Though  the  French  king  yielded  to  the  queen  of  Great 
Britain,  to  be  possessed  by  her,  in  full  right,  forever,  the  Bay  and  Straits 
of  Hudson,  and  all  parts  thereof,  and  within  the  same  then  possessed  by 
France,  yet  leaving  the  boundaries  between  Hudson's  B?.y  and  the  north 
parts  of  Canada  belonging  to  France  to  be  determined  by  commissaries 
within  a  year,  was,  in  effect,  the  &ame  thing  as  giving  up  the  point  alto- 
gether ;  it  being  well  known,  to  all  Europe,  that  France  never  permits 
her  commissaries  to  determine  matters  referred  to  such,  unless  it  can  be 
done  with  great  advantage  to  her.  Those  boundaries,  therefore,  have 
never  yet  been  settled,  though  the  British  and  French  subjects  are,  by 
that  article,  expressly  oebarred  from  passing  over  the  same,  or  thereby  to 
go  to  each  other,  by  sea  or  land.  These  commissaries  were  likewise  to 
settle  the  boundaries  between  the  other  British  and  French  colonies  on 

"  In  a  large  and  beautifully-engraved  map  of  the  United  States,  published  at  Phila- 
delphia, in  1821,  "from  the  'most  undoubted  authorities,  by ,  geosrrnpher  and 

draughtsman,"  the  northi;'rn  boundary  of  the  United  States  west  of  the  Mississippi  is 
represented  by  a  line  dravirn  westward  from  the  sources  of  that  river,  nearly  under  the 
latitude  of  47  degrees  and  40  minutes ;  the  country  north  of  this  line  being  stated  to 
be  "in  dispute  between  Spain  and  Great  Britain."  Now,  three  years  before  this  map 
appeared,  the  boundary  between  the  United  States  and  the  British  possessions  in  that 
part  of  America  had  been  fixed  by  treaty,  according  to  which,  the  dividing  line  fol- 
lowed the  course  of  the  40th  parallel;  and,  two  years  before  the  date  oi  the  map, 
Spain  had  also,  by  treaty,  "?ed  to  the  United  States  her  rights  to  all  territories  in 
America  north  of  the  42(i  parallel.  These  treaties  had  been  published ;  and  it  is 
scarcely  credible  that  they  should  have  been  unViown  to  an  American  geographer 
engaged  in  preparing  a  map  of  the  United  States.  Mistakes  of  the  same  kind,  equally 
great,  are,  however,  committed  in  Europe.  In  the  Encycloptedia  of  Geography, 
published  at  Edinburgh,  in  1834,  by  Hugh  Murray,  and  other  scientific  persons,  we 
find  it  stated,  (p.  13'^,)  that  "  the  whole  region  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  ex- 
tending between  the  42d  and  the  49th  parallels  of  latitude,  has,  by  discovery  and 
treaty, lieen  assigned  to  the  United  States ;  and  a  statement  to  the  same  effect  may  be 
found  in  the  London  Quarterly  Review  for  January,  1822.  These  mistakes  evidently 
arose  from  ignorance  :  but  the  same  defence  cannot  be  pleaded  in  all  cases  ;  for  maps 
have  been  drawn,  and  engraved,  and  colored,  with  a  full  knowledge  of  their  falseho^.d, 
in  order  to  forward  the  ends  rf  governments  or  of  individuals.  - 


nimissaries 


o.] 


PROOrS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


439 


that  continent,  which,  likewise,  was  never  done."    The  same  denial  is 
transferred  by  Macpherson  to  his  Annals  of  Commerce. 

The  only  evidence  of  the  appointment  of  commissaries  for  the  settlement 
of  limits  according  to  the  treaty  of  Utrecht  which  has  been  discovered, 
is  contained  in  a  passage  in  Charlevoix's  Histoire  de  la  Nouvelh  France, 
of  which  the  following  is  a  translation :  "  France  took  no  part  in  this 
dispute,  [between  the  British  and  the  Indians  of  Nova  Scotia,  in  1722,1 
in  order  to  avoid  giving  the  slightest  pretext  for  interrupting  the  good 
understanding  between  the  two  nations,  which  had  been  restored  with  so 
much  difficulty ;  even  the  negotiations  between  the  two  courts  for  the  set- 
tlement of  boundaries  ceased,  although  commissaries  had  been  appointed, 
on  both  sides,  for  that  object  since  1719." 


Papers  relative  to  the  American  Establishment  of  Astoria, 
ON  the  Columbia  River.* 

:  -  (1.) 

Letter  from  J.  J.  Astor,  of  New  York,  to  the  Honorable  John  Quincy 
Adams,  Secretary  of  State  of  the  United  States.^ 


Sir, 


New  York,  January  4th,  1S23. 


I  had  the  honor  to  receive  your  letter  of  the  24th  ultimo.  Indis- 
position has  prevented  my  acknowledging  the  receipt  thereof  at  an  earlier 
period. 

You  request  information  of  arrangements  made,  at  or  about  1814,  by 
the  North-West  Company  and  citizens  of  the  United  States,  by  which 
that  company  became  possessed  of  a  settlement  made  at  the  mouth  of 
Columbia  River  by  citizens  of  the  United  States.  The  settlement  to 
which  you  allude,  I  presume,  is  "  Astoria,"  as  I  know  of  no  other  having 
been  made  at  or  near  the  mouth  of  that  river.  Several  circumstances  are 
alleged,  as  having  contributed  to  the  arrangement  by  which  the  North- 
West  Company  became  in  possession  of  that  settlement,  but  chiefly  to  the 
misuse  of  the  confidence  which  had  been  placed  in  Mr.  McDougal,  who, 
at  the  time  the  arrangement  was  made,  and  at  the  time  my  agent,  Mr. 
Wilson  P.  Hunt,  was  absent,  acted  as  sub-agent. 

I  beg  leave  briefly  to  state,  that,  contemplating  to  make  an  establish- 
ment, at  the  mouth  of  Columbia  River,  which  should  serve  as  a  place  of 
depot,  and  give  further  facilities  for  conducting  a  trade  across  this  conti- 
nent to  that  river,  and  from  thence,  on  the  range  of  north-west  coast, 
&c.,  to  Canton,  in  China,  and  from  thence  to  the  United  States,  arrange- 
ments were  accordingly  made,  in  1810,  for  a  party  of  men  to  cross  the 

•  See  chap.  xiv.  of  the  History. 

t  Documents  aocompanying  President  Monroe's  message  to  Congress  of  January 
27th,  1823. 


•  n     l|l 


11 


h  li 


lf:f  i:f 


lil    ^1 


■■[   • 

1 1' 

:  i  / 

1^ 

■  !■ 

Ii  fi 

1 

i 

I 

i:! 


■:| 


440 


PROOra    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


)       ! 


lo. 


continent  for  the  Columbia  Rivor.  At  the  same  time,  I  fitted  out  the 
ship  Tonquin,  carrying  twenty  guns  and  sixty  men,  commanded  by  the 
late  Captain  Thorn,  lieutenant  in  the  United  States  navy.  The  ship 
sailed  in  September,  1810,  having  on  board  the  means  for  making  an 
establishment  hi  Columbia,  where  she  arrived  on  the  2^d  of  March,  1811. 
They  landed,  found  the  natives  friendly,  and  built  a  fort,  erected  a  house, 
store,  6lc.  This  being  accomplished.  Captain  Thorn  lefV  thirty  men  in 
possession  of  the  place,  to  await  the  party  who  were  to  make  the  voyage 
over  land ;  these,  also,  happily  arrived,  though  not  till  several  months  ufter. 
On  or  about  the  1st  of  June,  Captain  Thorn  left  Columbia  River,  with  a 
view  to  make  some  trade  on  the  coast,  and  then  to  return  to  the  river ; 
but,  unfortunately.  Thorn  never  returned.  At  about  two  hundred  miles 
north  of  Columbia,  he  put  in  a  bay  to  trnde  with  the  nati  les.  Not  at- 
tending to  the  precautions  necessary,  as  he  imd  been  instructed  to  do,  to 
guard  against  an  attack,  he  suffered  a  whole  tribe  of  Indians  to  come  on 
board  and  about  his  ship.  An  attack  was  n^ade ;  he  was  overpowered : 
tire  was  communicated  to  the  magazine,  the  ship  was  blown  up,  and  every 
soul  on  board  or  near  her  perished. 

In  1811,  I  fitted  out  another  ship,  the  Beaver,  carrying;  twenty  guns, 
with  a  duplicate  cargo  to  the  ship  Tonquin,  and  sixty  or  seventy  men. 
The  Cuptain  [Sowles]  was  instructed  to  sail  for  the  Columbia  River,  and 
in  search  of  the  men  who  were  sent  across  the  continent,  as  also  of  the 
Tonquin.  The  Beaver  sailed  from  this  in  f»ctober,  1811,  arrived  at  Co- 
lumbia in  May  following,  found  the  establishment,  and  landed  such  men, 
goods,  provisions,  &,c.,  as  the  establishment  was  in  need  of.  My  instruc- 
tions to  the  captain  were,  that,  after  supplying  the  establishment,  he  should 
proceed  to  Chatka,*  a  Russian  settlement,  for  the  purpose  of  trade,  and 
then  return  to  Columbia,  take  what  furs  we  had,  and  proceed  to  Canton, 
and  thence  to  New  York.  He  accordingly  left  Columbia,  (and,  most 
unfortunately,  Mr.  Hunt,  of  Trenton,  New  Jersey,  my  chief  ngent,  left 
the  river  with  him,)  sailed,  as  directed,  for  the  Russian  settlement,  and 
effected  their  object ;  but,  instead  of  following  instructi(>ns  to  return  to 
Columbia,  he  sailed  direct  for  Canton,  leaving  Mr.  Hunt  at  one  of  the 
Sandwich  Islands,  to  await  the  arrival  of  another  ship,  which  I  had  prom- 
ised to  send  from  this  in  1812.  The  ship  Beaver  arrived  at  Canton,  and 
received  there  the  news  of  the  war.  I  had  sent  orders  to  the  captain  to 
return  to  Astoria;  but  he  was  fearful  of  being  captured,  and  remained 
safely  at  Canton  till  the  war  was  over,  when  he  came  home.  In  conse- 
quence of  the  war,  I  found  it  inconvenient  to  send  a  ship  in  1812,  but  I 
did  send  one,  the  Lark,  early  in  1813,  with  directions  to  the  captain  to 
sail  for  Columbia  River,  and  to  stop  at  the  Sandwich  Islands  for  informa- 
tion. Being  within  a  few  days'  sai'  of  those  islands,  the  ship,  in  a  squall 
of  wind,  was  upset,  and  finally  drifted  on  the  beach  of  one  of  those 
islands,  a  wieck,  —  ship  and  cargo  totally  lost.  Here  was  met  Mr.  Hunt, 
who,  after  ;ill  the  information  he  received,  and  my  great  desire  to  protect 
the  establishment  at  Columbia  River,  procured  an  American  vessel,  took 
some  provisions,  sailed,  and  arrived  in  Columbia  River.  He  there  learned 
that  Mr.  McDougal  had  transmit 'red  all  my  property  to  the  North-West 
Company,  who  were  in  possession  of  it  by  a  sale,  as  he  called  it,  for  the 
sum  of  about  fifty-eighi  thousand  dollars,  of  which  he  retained  fourteen 


Sitka,  or  New  Archangel,  the  chief  establishment  in  Russian  America. 


0.1 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUITRATIOMS. 


441 


thousand  dollars,  for  wages  said  to  be  due  to  some  of  the  men.  From  the 
price  obt-  nod  for  the  goods,  &>c.,  and  he  having  himself  become  interested 
m  the  pui  chase,  and  made  a  partner  of  the  North- West  Company,  some 
idea  may  be  formed  as  to  this  man's  correctness  of  dealings.  It  will  be 
seen,  by  the  agreement  (that  of  which  I  transmit  a  copy)  and  the  invento* 
ry,  that  he  sold  to  the  North-West  Company  eighteen  thousand  one 
-hundred  and  seventy  and  a  quarter  pounds  of  bearer  at  two  dollarn,  which 
was  at  that  time  selling  in  Canton  at  five  and  six  dollars ;  nine  hundred 
and  seven  otter  skins  at  fifty  cents,  or  half  a  dollar,  which  were  selling  at 
Canton  at  five  to  six  dollars  per  skin. 

I  estimated  the  whole  property  to  be  worth  nearer  two  hundred 
thousand  dollars  than  forty  thousand  dollars,  about  the  sum  I  received  in 
bills  on  Montreal.  Previous  to  the  transaction  of  McDougal,  we  had 
already  establi'-hed  trading  posts  in  the  interior,  and  were  in  contact  with 
the  North-West  Company.  It  is  now  to  be  seen  what  means  have  been 
used  by  them  to  counteract  my  plan.  It  is  well  known  that,  as  soon  as 
the  North-West  Company  had  information  of  my  intention  and  plan  for 
conducting  my  commercial  operations,  they  despatched  a  party  of  men 
from  the  mterior,  with  a  view  to  arrive  before  my  people  at  Columbia. 
These  men  were  obliged  to  return  without  effecting  their  object.  In  the 
mean  time,  representation  was  made  to  their  government  as  to  the  proba- 
ble effect  of  my  operations  on  their  interest,  and  requesting  to  interfere 
in  their  behalf.  This  being  in  time  of  peace,  the  government  did  not 
deem  it  advisable  so  to  do.  So  soon,  however,  as  war  was  declared,  these 
representations  were  renewed^  aid  was  asked  from  the  government,  and  it 
was  granted.  The  Phcebe  frigate,  and  sloops  of  war  Raccoon  and  Por- 
cupine, were  sent  from  England,  wiili  orders  to  proceed  to  Columbia 
River,  and  destroy  my  property.  They  sailed  from  England  early  in  Jan- 
uary, 1813.  Arriving  at  Rio  Janeiro,  Admiral  Dickson  ordered  the 
PhcBbe  frigate,  with  one  of  the  sloops,  to  pursue  Captain  Porter  in  the 
frigate  Essex,  and  the  sloop  of  war  Raccoon,  to  the  Columbia.  She  ar- 
rived there,  took  possession  in  the  name  of  the  king,  and  changed  the 
name  of  the  place  from  Astoria  to  Fort  George.  Previous  to  this,  the 
North-West  Company  had  despatched  another  or  second  party  of  men  to 
the  Columbia.  They  arrived  there  in  the  absence  of  Mr.  Hunt ;  McDou- 
g**!  gave  them  support  and  protection,  and  they  commenced,  afler  some 
time,  to  negotiate  with  this  gentleman. 

The  reasons  assigned  by  him  for  his  conduct  will  be  seen  by  an  extract 
of  a  letter  said  to  have  been  sent  by  a  Mr.  Shaw,  of  the  North-West 
Company,  and  of  which  I  send  you  a  copy.  The  plan  by  me  adopted 
was  such  as  must  materially  have  affected  the  interest  of  the  ITorth-West 
and  Hudson's  Bay  Companies,  and  it  was  easy  to  be  foreseen  that  they 
would  employ  every  means  to  counteract  my  operations,  and  which,  as  my 
impression,  I  stated  to  the  executive  of  your  department  as  early  as  Fel> 
ruary,  1813,  as  will  be  seen  by  a  copy  of  the  sketch  of  a  letter  which  I 
wrote  to  the  secretary  of  state,  and  to  which  no  reply  was  given.  On  re- 
peated application,  some  time  afler,  aid  was  promised  me ;  but  I  believe 
the  situation  of  our  country  rendered  it  inconvenient  to  give  it.  You 
will  observe  that  the  name  of  the  Pacific  Fur  Company  is  made  use  of  at 
the  commencement  of  the  arrangements  for  this  undertaking.  I  preferred 
to  have  it  appear  as  the  business  of  a  company,  rather  than  that  of  an 
individual ;  and  several  of  the  gentlemen  engaged — Mi'.  Hunt,  Mr.  Crooks, 
56 


•!■       "I 


i"l;'  'T''* 


n  m 


n  iii 


44^ 


PRuOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


lo. 


r  i 


i      i-i 

ii 


Mr.  McKay,  McDougal,  Stuart,  dtc.  —  wure,  in  eflect,  to  be  interested  as 
partners  in  the  undertaking,  so  far  as  respected  tlie  profit  which  might 
arise :  but  the  means  w(  \  furnished  by  me,  and  the  property  was  Hoiely 
mine,  and  I  sustained  th.  loss,  which,  though  considerable,  I  do  not  re- 
gret, because,  had  it  not  been  for  the  unfortunate  occurrence  jii'  <  .Vtted,  I 
should  have  been,  as  I  believe,  most  richly  rewarded;  as  it  w'li  !>.,  seen 
that  the  difference  of  price  in  the  beuver  and  otter  skins  alone,  say  what 
I  received,  and  the  value  of  them  at  Canton  at  that  timef  is  about  sixty 
thousand  dollars.  The  copy  of  the  agreement,  inventory,  and  extract  of 
Shaw's  letter,  you  will  please  return  to  me. 

I  am,  sir,  &>c., 

John  Jacob  Abtor 

(20 

Agreement  between  the  Agents  of  the  Pacific  Fur  Company  and  the  North- 
West  Company,  for  the  Transfer  of  the  Establishments  of  the  Formtf, 
on  the  Columbia  River,  to  the  Latter  ,*  concluded  on  the  I6th  of  Octo- 
ber, 1813. 

The  association  heretofore  carrying  on  the  fur  trade  l-j  the  Columbia 
River  and  its  dependencies,  under  the  firm  and  denomination  of  the 
Pacific  Fur  Company,  being  dissolved,  on  the  Ist  of  July  last,  by 
Duncan  McDougal,  Donald  McKenzie,  David  Stuart,  and  John  Clarke, 
with  the  intention  to  abandon  the  trade  in  that  quarter,  it  is  hereby  agreed, 
concluded,  and  settled  upon,  of  their  own  free  will  and  consent,  by 
Duncan  McDougnl,  acting  for  himself  and  in  behalf  of  his  associates, 
namely,  Donald  iVU'iv^nzie,  David  Stuart,  and  John  Clarke,  on  the  one 
part,  and  John  Cv^xTgc  McTavish  and  John  Stuart,  acting  for  themselves 
and  in  behalf  v''  (.ha  ; '^rth-West  Company,  on  the  other  part,  that  the 
following  agr»>  :u;y,iit  ;  nd  settlement  take  place  between  them,  and  be 
binding  and  obi;g;Uot'v  in  the  manner,  and  subject  to  the  terms  and  agree- 
ments, hereinafter  spdcified  and  contained.  Now,  therefore,  it  is  hereby 
mutuaJly  agreed  and  concluded,  by  and  between  the  said  parties  to  these 
presents,  and  they  do  hereby  mutually  covenant  and  agree,  to  and  with 
each  other,  in  manner  following,  that  is  to  say :  — 

Article  1.  The  party  of  the  former  part  hereby  covenants  and 
agrees  to  deliver,  or  cause  to  be  delivered,  the  whole  of  the  establish- 
ments, furs,  and  present  stock  in  hand,  on  the  Columbia  and  Thomp- 
son's Rivers,  as  soon  as  the  necessary  inventories  can  be  taken,  unto  the 
said  party  of  the  latter  part,  or  any  iiiu?r  person  or  persons  appointed  by 
them  to  represent  the  North- West  Ct-japany,  to  receive  the  same  at  the 
prices  and  rates  concluded  and  agreed  upon  as  hereinafter  specified,  in 
article  fourth. 

Art.  2.   In  consideration  of  article  first  being  duly  and   faithfully 

Serformed  by  the  party  of  the  former  part,  they,  the  said  John  George 
IcTavish  and  John  Stuart,  for  themselves  and  on  behalf  of  the  North- 
West  Company,  do  bind  and  oblige  themselves  and  the  said  North-l^est 
Company,  or  their  agents,  to  pay  or  cause  to  be  paid,  unto  the  said 
Duncan  McDougal,  acting  for  himself  and  in  behalf  of  his  associates,  as 
before  mentioned,  his  attorneys,  assigns,  or  order,  the  amount  of  the  sums 
arising  from  the  sale,  according  to  article  first,  and  the  rates  hereinafter 


G.] 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


V 

443 


Iffi    I 


specified  in  article  fourth,  at  three  several  instalments;  thp  first  one 
third  on  or  br»ore  the  2!i\.\\  of  October,  1814,  the  second  one  third  on 
or  before  the  25th  of  November,  and  tlu>  remaining  one  third  on  or  be» 
fore  the  25th  of  December.  And,  further,  it  is  heretiy  understood  that, 
should  the  party  of  the  former  part  find  it  convenient  to  leave  the  amount 
of  t)>  !«everal  dral\a,  ailer  becoming  payable,  os  already  specified,  in  the 
hand^  of  the  party  of  the  latter  part,  or  their  agents,  they,  the  siiid  party 
of  the  luitcr  part,  or  their  agents,  will  allow  interest  at  six  per  cent,  until 
paid  on  demand ;  and,  as  there  are  several  moneys,  the  produce  uf  their 
wages,  due  unto  the  people  employed  in  the  service  of  the  late  Pacific  Fur 
Cotnpany,  carrying  on  trade  on  the  Columbia  and  Thompson's  Rivers, 
tlte  said  party  of  the  latter  part,  namely,  John  Qeor  VIcTavish  and  John 
Stuart,  acting  for  themselves  and  the  NortH-'  'ompany,  as  their 

agents,  do  hereby  bind  uiid  oblige  themselvi  i^e  to  be  paid, 

unto  the  several  individuals  employed  by  the  [i  mer  part,  the 

amount  of  t-he  bal  mces  due  t*^  them,  according  uent  that  shall 

be  delivert'd  by  the  said  Duncan  McDougal,  (u  ^  tot  aimself  and  his 
associates,  as  before  mentioned,  within  one  month  after  their,  arrival  at 
Montreal,  in  the  province  of  Lower  Canada ;  the  amount  of  which  several 
sums,  so  paid .  is  to  be  considered  as  part  of,  and  deducted  from,  the  first 
instalment,  to  be  paid  unto  the  said  Duncan  McDougal,  acting  for  him- 
self and  his  associates,  as  before  mentioned,  his  attorneys,  assigns,  or 
order,  on  or  before  the  25th  of  October,  1814. 

Art.  3.  And,  further,  the  said  John  George  McTavish  and  John 
Stuart,  acting  for  themselves  and  'he  North-West  Company,  will  be  at 
liberty  to  make  a  selection,  and  take  into  their  service  such  of  the  peo- 
ple in  the  employment  of  the  party  of  the  former  part  as  they  may  think 
proper ;  in  consideration  of  which,  the  said  party  of  the  latter  part  bind 
and  oblige  themselves  to  pay,  or  cause  to  be  paid,  unto  the  said  party  of 
the  former  part,  the  several  sums  due  to  them  by  such  as  may  enter  into 
the  service  of  the  party  of  the  latter  part :  and  the  said  party  of  the  latter 
part  further  bind  and  oblige  themselves  to  provide  and  insure  a  safe  pas- 
sage to  the  said  party  of  the  former  part,  and  the  remainiti ,  part,  that  will 
not  be  taken  into  their  service,  to  their  respective  homes. 

Art.  4.  And,  further,  it  is  hereby  agreed  and  concluded  upon,  by 
the  said  parties,  that  the  following  are  the  rates  at  which  the  establish- 
ments, furs,  and  stock  on  hand,  be  valued  at,  as  follows:  dry  goods,  sta- 
tionery, gunpowder,  and  leaf  tobacco,  fifty  per  cent,  on  the  prime  coat; 
ship  chandlery,  sixty  per  cent. ;  shot,  ball,  lead,  iron,  and  steel,  one 
hundred  per  cent. ;  deduction  on  made-up  iron  works  at  Columbia  River, 
thirty-three  and  one  third  per  cent. ;  new  boats,  each,  ten  pounds  Halifax 
currency ;  boats  in  use,  each,  five  pounds  Halifax  currency ;  shallop,  with 
rigging  complete,  one  hundred  and  twelve  pounds  ten  shillings ;  two  black- 
smith's forges  complete,  twenty-five  pounds ;  plug  tobacco,  one  shilling  and 
six  pence  per  pound ;  plug  tobacco  manufactured  at  Columbia,  one  shil- 
ling and  tliree  pence  per  pound;  beads  assorted,  five  shillings  per  pound; 
arms,  cannon,  &,c., prime  cost;  provisions  at  fixed  prices;  articles  in  use, 
half  inventory  prices ;  horses,  thirty  shillings  each ;  buildings,  two  hun- 
dred pounds ;  John  Reid's  adventure,  and  Freeman's,  in  the  vicinity  of 
Snake  country  and  Spanish  River,  to  deduct  one  hundred  per  cent.; 
beaver  furs,  ten  shillings  per  pound ;  beaver  coating,  eight  shillings  and 
four  pence  per  pound;    muskrats,  seven  pence  half-penny  each;  land 


I' 


'II! 


IMAGE  EVALUATION 
TEST  TARGET  (MT-3) 


1.0 


1.1 


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23  WEST  MAIN  STREET 

WEBSTER,  N.Y.  MSSO 

(716)a72-4S03 


444 


PSOOVS  AND  ILLUSTlUTIOirS. 


ISa 


otters,  two  ahillings  and  six  pence  each;  sea  otters,  large,  sixty  shillings 
each. 

And  for  the  faithful  performunce  of  all  and  singular  the  said  coTenants 
and  agreements,  to  be  by  them  respectively  kept  and  performed,  all  and 
every  of  the  parties  to  these  presents  bind  themselves,  separately  and 
jointly,  for  their  several  associates,  firmly  by  these  presents.  In  witcess 
whereof,  the  parties  to  these  presents  have  heri^unto  set  their  hands  and 
seals,  this  16th  day  of  October,  1813,  at  the  entrance  of  Columbia  River, 
north-west  coast  of  America. 


Witnesses. 
John  C.  Haslet,         Angus  Betkvne, 
Gabriel  Franchere,  James  McMill.4N, 
Alfred  Seaton,  Joseph  McGillitrat, 

WiLtxAM  Wallace, 


DimCAN   McDoUGAL, 

J.  6.  McTavish, 
J.  Stuart. 


(3.) 


11 


I 

.  *,   ■ 


Account  of  tht  Capture  of  Astoria  by  the  British  Sloop  of  War  Raccoon, 
Captain  Black,  in  December,  1813.  Extracted  from  "Adventures  on 
the  Columbia  River,  by  John  Ross  Cox." 

The  Isaac  Todd  sailed  from  Ijondon  in  March,  1813,  in  company 
with  the  Phoebe  frigate,  and  the  Cherub  and  Raccoon  sloops  of  war. 
They  arrived  safe  at  Rio  Janeiro,  and  thence  proceeded  around  Cape 
Horn  to  the  Pacific,  having  previously  made  arrangements  to  meet  at 
Juan  Fernandez.  The  three  men-of-war  reached  the  latter  island,  after 
encountering  dreadful  gales  about  the  cape :  they  waited  there  some  time 
for  the  Isaac  Todd ;  but,  as  she  did  not  make  her  appearance,  Commo- 
dore Hitlyer  did  not  deem  it  prudent  to  remain  any  longer  inactive.  He 
therefore,  in  company  with  the  Cherub,  proceeded  in  search  of  Commo- 
dore Porter,  who,  in  the  American  frigate  Essex,  was  clearing  the  South 
Sea  of  English  whalers,  and  inflicting  other  injuries  of  a  serious  nature 
on  our  commerce ;  he  shortly  after  met  the  Essex  at  Valparaiso,  and,  after 
a  severe  contest,  captured  her. 

At  the  same  time,  he  ordered  Captain  Black,  in  the  Raccoon,  to 
'  proceed  direct  to  the  Columbia,  for  the  purpose  of  destroying  the  Ameri- 
can establishments  at  Astoria.  The  Raccoon  arrived  at  the  Columbia  on 
the  1st  of  December,  1813.  The  surprise  and  disappointment  of  Captain 
Black  and  his  o<^cers  were  extreme,  on  learning  the  arrangement  that  had 
taken  place  between  the  two  companies,  by  which  the  establishment  had 
become  British  property.     They  had  calculated  on  obtaining  a  splendid 

Erize  by  the  capture  of  Astoria,  the  strength  and  importance  of  which 
ad  been  much  magnified;  and  the  contracting  parties  were  therefore 
fortunate  in  having  closed  their  bargain  previous  to  the  arrival  of  tb? 
Raccoon.  On  looking  at  the  wooden  fortifications,  Captain  Black  ex- 
claimed, "  Is  this  the  fort  about  which  I  have  heard  so  much  f  D — n  me 
but  1  'd  batter  it  down  in  two  hours  with  a  four-pounder."  Captain  Black, 
however,  took  possession  of  Astoria  in  the  name  of  his  Britannie  miyesty. 


\ 


a] 


PROOrS    AND   ILLCSTRATIONil. 


445 


II 
r"'i 


and  rebaptized  it  by  the  tiame  of  "  Fort  George."  He  also  insisted  on 
having  an  inventory  taken  of  the  valuable  stock  of  furs,  and  all  other 
property  purchased  from  the  American  company,  with  a  view  to  the  adop- 
tion of  ulterior  proceedings  in  England  for  the  recovery  of  the  value  from 
the  North- West  Company ;  but  he  subsequently  relinquished  this  idea,  and 
we  heard  no  more  about  his  claims. 

The  Indians  at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  knew  well  that  Qreat 
Britain  and  America  were  distinct  nations,  and  that  they  were  then  at 
war,  but  were  ignorant  of  the  arrangement  made  between  Messrs.  McDou- 
gal  and  McTavish,  the  former  of  whom  still  continued  as  nominal 
chief  at  the  fort.  On  the  arrival  of  the  Raccoon,  which  they  qiiickly 
discovered  to  be  one  of  "King  George's  fighting  ships,""  they  repaired, 
armed,  to  the  fort,  and  requested  an  audience  of  Mr.  McDougal.  He 
was  somewhat  surprised  at  their  numbers  and  warlike  appearance,  and 
demanded  the  object  of  such  an  unusual  visit.  Comcomly,  the  principal 
chief  of  the  Chinooks,  (whose  daughter  McDougal  had  married,)  there- 
upon addressed  him  in  a  long  speech,  in  the  course  of  which  he  said  that 
King  George  had  sent  a  ship  full  of  warriors,  and  loaded  with  nothing 
but  big  guns,  to  take  the  Americans  and  make  them  all  slaves,  and  that, 
as  they  (the  Americans)  were  the  first  white  men  who  settled  in  their 
country,  and  treated  the  Indians  like  good  relations,  they  had  resolved  to 
defend  them  from  King  George's  warriors,  and  were  now^  ready  to  conceal 
themselves  in  the  woods  close  to  the  wharf,  from  whence  they  would  be 
able,  with  their  guns  and  arrows,  to  shoot  all  the  men  that  should  attempt 
to  land  from  the  English  boats,  while  the  people  in  the  fort  could  fire  at 
them  with  their  big  guns  and  rifles.  This  proposition  was  uttered  with 
an  earnestness  of  manner  that  admitted  no  doubt  of  its  sincerity.  Two 
armed  boats  from  the  Raccoon  were  approaching;  and,  had  the  people 
in' the  fort  felt  disposed  to  accede  to  the  wishes  of  the  Indians,  every  man 
in  thern  would  have  been  destroyed  by  an  invisible  enemy.  Mr.  McDou- 
gal thanked  them  for  their  friendly  ofier,  but  added,  that,  notwithstanding 
the  nations  were  at  war,  the  people  in  the  boats  would  not  injure  him  or 
any  of  his  people,  and  therefore  requested  them  to  throw  by  their  war 
shirts  and  arms,  and  receive  the  strangers  as  their  friends.  They  at  first 
seemed  astonished  at  this  answer;  but,  on  assuring  the^,  in  the  most 
positive  manner,  that  he  was  under  no  apprehensions,  they  consented  to 
give  up  their  weapons  for  a  few  days.  They  afterwards  declar  -d  they 
were  sorry  for  having  complied  with  Mr.  McDougal's  wishes ;  for  when 
they  observed  Captam  Black,  surrounded  by  his  officers  and  marines, 
break  the  bottle  of  Port  on  the  flag-staff,  and  hoist  the  British  ensign,  after 
changing  the  name  of  the  fort,  they  remarked  that,  however  we  might 
wish  to  conceal  the  fact,  the ' Americans, were  undoubtedly  made  slaves; 
and  they  were  not  convinced  of  their  mistake  until  the  sloop  of  war  had 
departed  without  taking  any  prisoners. 


mm 


m 


tit 

is 

,'1: 


446 


PROOFS   AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


fH. 


H. 


DOCUMENTS   RELATIVE   TO   THE    NEGOTIATION   IN    1826-7.* 


■S 


:^ 


f  : 


v/ 


L 


(10 

Britiah  Statement  annexed  to  the  Protocol  of  the  sixth  Conference,  by 
Messrs.  Huskisson  and  Addington,  Plenipotentiaries  on  the  Part  of 
Great  Britain. 

The  government  of  Great  Britain,  in  proposing  to  renew,  for  a  further 
term  of  years,  the  third  article  of  the  convention  of  1818,  respecting  the 
territory  on  the  north-west  coast  of  America,  west  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains, regrets  that  it  has  been  found  impossible,  in  the  present  negotiation, 
to  agree  upon  a  line  of  boundary  which  should  separate  those  parts  of  that 
territory,  which  might  henceforward  be  occupied  or  settled  by  the  subjects 
of  Great  Britain,  from  the  parts  which  would  remain  open  to  occupancy 
and  settlement  by  the  United  States. 

To  establish  such  a  boundary  must  be  the  ultimate  object  of  both 
countries.  With  this  object  in  contemplation,  and  from  a  persuasion  that 
a  part  of  the  diMculties  which  have  hitherto  prevented  'its  attainment  is 
to  be  attributed  to  a  misconception,  on  the  part  of  the  United  States,  of 
the  claims  and  views  of  Great  Britain  in  regard  to  the  territory  in  ques- 
tion, the  British  plenipotentiaries  d^am  it  advicable  to  bring  under  the 
notice  of  the  American  plenipotentiary  a  full  and  explicit  exposition  of 
those  claims  and  views. 

'As  preliminary  to  this  discussion,  it  is  highly  desirable  to  mark  dis- 
tinctly the  broad  difference  between  the  nature  of  the  rights  claimed  by 
Great  Britain  and  those  asserted  by  the  United  States,  in  respect  to  the 
territory  in  question. 

Over  a  large  portion  of  that  territory,  namely,  from  the  42d  degree 
to  the  49th  degree  of  north  latitude,  the  United  State  jm  full  and  ex- 
clusive sovereignty. 

Great  Britain  claims  no  exclusive  sovereignty  over  ^  ;^  portion  of  that 
territory.  Her  present  claira,  not  in  respect  to  any  part,  but  to  the  whole, 
is  limited  to  a  right  of  joint  occupancy,  in  common  with  other  states, 
leaving  the  right  of  exclusive  dominion  iy-.  abeyance. 

In  other  words,  the  pretensions  of  the  United  States  tend  to  the  ejec- 
tion of  all  other  nations,  and,  among  the  rest,  of  Great  Britain,  from  all 
right  of  settlement  in  the  district  claimed  by  the  United  States. 

The  pretensions  of  Great  Britain,  on  the  contrary,  tend  to  the  mere 
maintenance  of  her  own  rights,  in  resistance  to  the  exclusive  character  of 
^  the  pretensions  of  the  United  States. 

Having  thus  stated  the  nature  of  the  respective  claims  of  the  two 
parties,  the  British  plenipotentiaries  will  now  examine  the  grounds  on 
which  those  claims  are  founded. 

'  *  These  two  documents,  which  were  published  with  President  Adams's  Message  to 
Congress  of  December  12th,  1827,  are  here  inserted  in  full,  because  reference  is  fre- 
quently made  to  them  in  the  History,  particularly  to  the  British  paper,  the  numerous 
misstatements  in  which  are  exposed  and  refuted.  See  page  347,  and  other  pages,  as 
specified  in  the  notes. 


IH. 


tt] 


.PROOFS   AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


447 


I." 


rence,  6y 
Part  of 

■  a  further 
ecting  the 
sky  Moun- 
egotiatiou, 
irt3  of  that 
he  subjects 
occupancy 

ct  of  both 
juasion  that 
tainraent  is 
1  States,  of 
ory  in  ques- 
g  under  the 
^position  of 

to  mark  dis- 
claimed by 
spect  to  the 

42d  degree 
full  and  ex- 

Hion  of  that 
Ito  the  whole, 
1  other  states, 

4  to  the  ejec- 
lain,  from  all 
les. 

1  to  the  mere 
character  of 

of  the  two 
grounds  on 


L'g  Me«»ge  to 
iSsrence  »  "«- 
I  the  numerous 
Tother  pages,  a» 


The  datmb  of  the  United  States  are  urged  upon  three  grounds : 

Ist   As  resulting  firom  their  own  proper  right. 

Sdly.  As  resulting  from  a  right  derived  to  them  from  Spain;  that 
power  having,  by  the  treaty  of  Florida,  concluded  with  the  United  States 
in  1819,  ceded  to  the  latter  all  their  rights  and  claims  on  the  western 
coast  of  America  north  of 'the  42d  degree. 

Sdly.  As  resulting  from  a  right  derived  to  them  from  France,  to 
whom  the  United  States  succeeded,  by  treaty,  in  possession  of  the 
province  of  Louisiana. 

The  first  right,  or  right  proper,  of  the  United  States,  is  founded  on 
the  alleged  discovery  of  the  Columbia  River  by  Mr.  Gray,  of  Boston^ 
who,  in  1792,  entered  that  river,  and  explored  it  to  some  distance  from 
its  mouth. 

To  this  are  added  the  first  exploration,  by  Lewis  and  Clarke,  of  a 
main  branch  of  the  same  river,  from  its  source  downwards,  and  alsp  the 
alleged  priority  of  settlement,  by  citizens  of  the  United  States,  of  the 
country  in  the  vicinity  of  the  same  river. 

The  second  right,  or  right  derived  from  Spain,  is  founded  on  the  alleged 
prior  discovery  of  the  region  in  dispute  by  Spanish  navigators,  of  whom 
the  chief  were,  1st,  Cabrillo,  who,  in  1543,  visited  that  coast  as  far  as  44 
degrees  north  latitude;  2d,  De  Fuca,  who,  as  it  is  affirmed,  in  1598, 
entered  the  straits  known  by  his  name,  in  latitude  49  degrees;  3d, 
Gualle,  who,  in  1582,  is  said  to  have  pushed  his  researches  as  high  as 
57  degrees  north  latitude ;  4th,  Perez,  and  others,  who,  between  the  years 
1774  and  1792,  visited  Nootka  Sound  and  the  adjacent  coasts. 

The  third  right,  derived  from  the  cession  of  Louisiana  to  the  United 
States,  is  founded  on  the  assumption  that  that  province,  its  boundaries 
never  having  been  exactly  defined  longitudinally,  may  fairly  be  as- 
serted to  extend  w^estward  across  the  Rocky  Mountains,  to  the  shore 
of  the  Pacific.  » 

Before  the  merits  of  these  respective  claims  are  considered,  it  is 
necessary  to  observe  that  one  only  out  of  the  three  can  be  valid. 

They  are,  in  fact,  claims  obviously  incompatible  the  one  with  the 
other.  If,  for  example,  the  title  of  Spain  by  first  discovery,  or  the  title 
of  France  as  the  original  possessor  of  Louisiana,  be  valid,  then  must  one 
or  the  other  of  those  kingdoms  have  been  the  lawful  possessor  of  that 
territory,  at  the  moment  when  the  United  States  claim  to  have  discovered 
it.  If,  on  the  other  hind,  the  Americans  were  tjie  first  discoverers,  there 
is  necessarily  an  end  of  the  Spanish  claim;  and  if  priority  of  discovery 
constitutes  the  title,  that  of  France  falls  equally  to  the  ground. 

Upon  the  question,  how  far  prior  discovery  constitutes  a  legal  claim  to 
sovereignty,  the  law  of  nations  is  somewhat  vague  and  undefined.  It  is, 
however,  admitted  by  the  most  approved  writers  that  mere  accidental 
discovery,  unattended  by  exploration — by  formally  taking  possession  in 
the  name  of  the  discoverer's  sovereign — by  occupation  and  settlement, 
more  or  less  permanent — by  purchase  of  the  territory — or  receiving  the 
sovereignty  from  the  natives — constitutes  the  lowest  degree  of  title,  and 
that  it  is  only  in  proportion  as  first  discovery  is  followed  by  any  or  all  of 
these  acts,  that  such  title  is  strengthened  and  confirmed. 

The  rights  conferred  by  discovery,  therefore,  must  be  discussed  on 
their  own  merits. 

But  before  the  British  plenipotentiaries  proceed  to  compare  the  relative 


'if 
li 


mml 


m 


448 


FBOOrS    AND   ILLUSTRATIONS^ 


[H. 


claims  of  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States,  in  this  respect,  it  will  be 
advisable  to  dispose  of  the  two  other  grounds  of  right,  put  forward  by  the 
United  States. 

The  second  ground  of  claim,  advanced  by  the  United  States,  is  the 
cession  made  by  Spain  to  the  United  States,  by  the  treaty  of  Florida, 
in  1819. 

If  the  conflicting  claims  of  Great  Biititin  and  Spain,  in  respect  to  all 
that  part  of  the  coast  of  North  America,  had  not  been  finally  adjusted  by 
the  convention  of  Nootka,  in  the  year  1790,  and  if  all  the  arguments  and 
pretensions,  whether  resting  on  priority  of  discovery,  or  derived  from  uny 
other  consideration,  had  not  been  definitivily  set  at  rest  by  the  signature 
of  that  convention,  nothing  would  be  more  easy  than  to  demonstrate  that 
the  claims  of  Great  Britain  to  that  country,  as  opposed  to  those  of  Spain, 
were  so  far  from  visionary,  or  arbitrarily  assumed,  that  they  established 
more  than  a  parity  of  title  to  the  possession  of  the  country  in  question, 
either  as  against  Spain,  or  any  other  nation. 

Whatever  that  title  may  have  been,  however,  either  on  the  part  of 
Great  Britain  or  on  the  part  of  Spain,  prior  to  the  convention  of  1790,  it 
was  from  thenceforward  no  longer  to  be  traced  in  vague  narratives  of 
discoveries,  several  of  them  admitted  to  be  apocryphal,  but  in  the  text  and 
stipulations  of  that  convention  itself. 

By  that  convention  it  was  agreed  that  all  parts  of  the  north-western 
coast  of  America,  not  already  occupied  at  that  time  by  either  of  the  con- 
tracting parties,  shouldi  thenceforward  be  equally  open  to  the  subjects 
of  both,  ■  for  all  purposes  of  commerce  and  settlement ;  the  sovereignty 
remaining  in  abeyance. 

In  this  stipulation,  as  it  has  been  already  stated,  all  tracts  of  country 
claimed  by  Spain  and  Great  Britain,  or  accruing  to  either,  in  whatever 
manner,  were  included. 

The  rights  of  Spain  on  that  coast  were,  by  the  treaty  of  Florida,  in 
1819,  conveyed  by  Spain  to  the  United  States.  With  those  rights  the 
United  States  necessarily  succeeded  to  the  limitations  by  which  they 
were  defined,  and  the' obligations  under  which  they  were  to  be  exercised. 
From  those  obligations  and  limitations,  as  contracted  towards  Great 
Britain,  Great  Britain  cannot  be  expected  gratuitously  to  release  those 
countries,  merely  because  the  rights  of  the  party  originally  bound  have 
been  transferred  to  a  third  power. 

The  third  ground  of  claim  of  the  United  States-  rests  on  the  right 
supposed  to  be  derived  from  the  cession  to  them  of  Louisiana  by 
France. 

In  arguing  this  branch  of  the  question,  it  will  not  be  necessary  to 
examine  in  detail  the  very  dubious  point  of  the  assumed  extent  of  that 
province,  since,  by  the  treaty  between  France  and  Spain  of  1763,  the 
whole  of  that  territory,  defined  or  undefined,  real  or  ideal,  was  ceded  by 
France  to  Spain,  and,  consequently,  belonged  to  Spain,  not  only  in  1790, 
when  the  convention  of  Nootka  was  signed  between  Great  Britain  and 
Spain,  but  also  subsequently,  in  1792,  the  period  of  Gray's  discovery  of 
the  mouth  of  the  Columbia.  If,  then,  Louisiana  embraced  the  country 
west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains,  to  the  south  of  the  49th  parallel  of  latitude, 
it  must  have  embraced  the  Columbia  itself,  which  that  parallel  intersects; 
and,  consequently,  Gray's  discovery  must  have  been  made  in  a  country 
avowedly  already  appropriated  to  Spain,  and,  if  so  appropriated,  neces- 


HJ 


PROOrS    AND    ILLU8TBATI0NB. 


449 


sarily  included,  with  all  other  Spniiish  possessions  and  claims  in  that 
quarter,  in  the  Htipulations  of  the  Nootka  convention. 

Even  if  it  could  be  shown,  therefore,  that  the  district  west  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  was  within  the  boundaries  of  Louisiana,  that  circuin* 
stance  would  in  no  way  assist  the  claim  of  the  United  States. 

It  may,  nevertheless,  be  worth  while  to  expose,  in  a  few  words,  the, 
futility  of  the  attempt  to  include  that  district  within  those  boundaries. 

For  this  purpose,  it  is  only  necessary  to  refer  to  the  original  grant  of 
Louisiana  made  to  De  Crozat  by  Louis  XIV.,  shortly  after  its  discovery 
by  La  Salle.  That  province  is  therein  expressly  described  as  "  the 
country  drained  by  the  waters  entering,  directly  or  iadirectly,  into  the 
Mississippi."  Now,  unless  it  can  be  shown  that  any  of  the  tributaries 
of  the  Mississippi  cross  the  Rocky  Mountains  from  west  to  east,  it  is 
difficult  to  conceive  how  any  part  of  Louisiana  can  be  found  to  the  west 
of  that  ridge. 

There  remains  to  be  considered  the  first  ground  of  claim  advanced 
by  the  United  States  to  the  territory  in  question,  namely,  that  founded 
on  their  own  proper  right  as  first  discoverers  and  occupiers  of  that 
territory. 

If  the  discovery  of  the  ".ountry  in  question,  or  rather  the  mere  en- 
trance into  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  by  a  private  American  citizen,  be, 
as  the  United  States  assert,  (although  Great  Britain  is  far  from  admitting 
the  correctness  of  the  assertion,)  a  valid  ground  of  national  and  exclusive 
claim  to  all  the  country  situated  between  the  42d  and  49th  parallels  of 
latitude,  then  must  any  preceding  discovery  of  the  same  country,  by  an 
individual  of  any  other  nation,  invest  such  nation  with  a  more  valid, 
because  a  prior,  claim  to  that  country. 

Now,  to  set  aside,  for  the  present,  Drake,  Cook,  and  Vancouver,  who  all 
of  them  either  took  possession  of,  or  touched  at,  various  points  of  the  coast 
in  question,  Great  Britain  can  show  that  in  1788  —  that  is,  four  years 
before  Gray  entered  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia  River — Mr.  Meares,* 
a  lieutenant  of  the  royal  navy,  who  had  been  sent  by  the  East  India 
Company  on  a  trading  expedition  to  the  north-west  coast  of  America, 
had  already  minutely  explored  that  coast,  fi-om  the  49th  degree  to  the  45th 
degree  north  latitude ;  had  taken  formal  possession  of  the  Straits  of  De 
Fuca,  in  the  name  of  his  sovereign ;  had  purchased  land,  trafficked  and 
fitrmed  treaties  with  the  natives ;  and  had  actually  entered  the  bay  of  the 
'^Columbia,  to  the  northern  headland  of  which  he  gave  the  name  of  Cape 
Disappointment  —  a  name  which  it  bears  to  this  day. 

Dixon,  Scott,  Duncan,  Strange,  and  other  private  British  traders,  had 
also  visited  these  shores  and  countries  several  years  before  Gray ;  but  the 
single  example  of  Meares  suffices  to  quash  Gray's  claim  to  prior  discovery. 
To  the  other  navigators  above  mentioned,  therefore,  it  is  unnecessary  to 
refer  more  particularly. 

It  may  be  worth  while,  however,  to  observe^  with  regard  to  Meares, 
that  his  account  of  his  voyages  was  published  in  London  in  August, 
1790;  that  is,  two  years  before  Gray  is  even  pretended  to  have  entered 
the  Columbia.     ^ 

To  that  account  are  appended,  first,  extracts  from  his  log-book ; 
secondly,  maps  of  the  cn»«ts  and  harbors  which  he  visited,  in  which  every 


mi 
1 


[  ! 


:  li 


Se«  p.  177. 


57 


'[A 


ii 


I 


ft 


\ 


450 


PROOrS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[H. 


part  of  the  coast  in  question,  including  the  bay  of  the  Columbia,  (into 
which  the  log  expressly  states  that  Meares  entered,)  is  minutely  laid  down, 
its  delineation  tallying,  in  almost  every  particular,  with  Vancouver's  8ul> 
sequent  survey,  and  with  the  description  found  in  all  the  best  maps  of 
that  part  of  the  world,  adopted  at  tliis  moment ;  thirdly,  the  account  in 
question  actually  contains  an  engraving,  dated  in  August,  1790,  of  the 
'entrance  of  De  Fuca's  Straits,  executed  after  a  design  taken  in  June, 
1788,  by  Meares  himself. 

With  these  physical  evidences  of  authenticity,  it  is  as  needless  to 
contend  for,  as  it  is  impossible  tO'  controvert,  the  truth  of  Meares's 
statement. . 

It  was  only  on  the  17th  of  September,  1788,  that  the  Washington, 
commanded  by  Mr.  Gray,  first  made  her  appearance  at  Nootka. 

If,  therefore,  any  claim  to  these  countries,  as  between  Great  Britain 
and  the  United  States,  is  to  be  deduced  fronv  priority  of  the  discovery,  the 
above  exposition  of  dates  and  facts  suffices  to  establish  that  claim  in  favor 
of  Great  Britain,  on  a  basis  too  firm  to  be  shaken. 

It  must,  indeed,  be  admitted  that  Mr.  Gray,  finding  himself  in  the 
bay  formed  by  the  discharge  of  the  waters  of  the  Columbia  into  the 
Pacific,  was  the  first  to  ascertain  that  this  bay  formed  the  outlet  of  a 
great  river  —  a  discovery  which  had  escaped  Lieutenant  Meares,  when, 
in  1788,  four  years  before,  he  entered  the  same  bay. 

But  can  it  be  seriously  urged  that  this  single  step  in  the  progress  of 
discovery  not  only  wholly  supersedes  the  prior  discoveries,  both  of  the 
bay  and  the  coast,  by  Lieutenant  Meares,  but  equally  absorbs  t>ic  subse- 
quent exploration  of  the  river  by  Captain  Vancouver,  for  near  a  hundred 
miles  above  the  point  to  which  Mr.  Gray's  ship  had  proceeded,  the  formal 
taking  possession  of  it  by  that  British  navigator,*  in  the  name  of  his 
sovereign,  and  also  all  the  other  discoveries,  explorations,  and  temporary 
possession  and  occupation  of  the  ports  and  harbors  on  the  coast,  as  well 
of  the  Pacific  as  within  the  Straits  of  De  Fuca,  up  to  the  49th  parallel 
of  latitude  ? 

,  This  pretension,  however,  extraordinary  as  it  is,  does  not  embrace 
the  whole  of  the  claim  which  the  United  States  build  upon  the  limited 
discovery  of  Mr.  Gray,  namely,  that  the  bay  of  which  Cape  Disappoint- 
ment is  the  northernmost  headland,  is,  in  fact,  the  embouchure  of  a 
river.  That  mere  ascertainment,  it  is  asserted,  confers  on  the  United 
States  a  title,  in  exclusive  sovereignty,  to  the  whole  extent  of  country 
drained  by  such  river,  and  by  all  its  tributary  streams. 

In  support  of  this  very  extraordinary  pretension,  the  United  States 
allege  the  precedent  of  grants  and  charters  accorded  in  former  times  to 
companies  and  individuals,  by  various  European  sovereigns,  over  several 
parts  of  the  American  continent.  Amongst  other  instances  are  adduced 
the  charters  granted  by  Elizabeth,  James  I.,  Charles  II.,  and  George  U., 
to  sundry  British  subjects  and  associations,  as  also  the  grant  made  by 
Louis  XIV.  to  De  Crozat  over  the  tract  of  country  watered  by  the 
Mississippi  and  its  tributaries. 

But  can  such  charters  be  considered  an  acknowledged  part  of  the 
law  of  nations  ?  Were  they  any  thing  more,  in  fact,  than  a  cession  to 
the  grantee  or  grantees  of  whatever  rights  the  grantor  might  suppose 


See  p.  848. 


H.] 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATION!. 


ii^i 


himself  to  possess,  to  the  exclusion  of  other  subjects  of  the  same  sor- 
ereignT  —  charters  binding  and  restraining  those  only  who  were  within 
the  jurisdiction  of  the  grantor,  and  of  no  force  or  validity  against  the 
subjects  of  other  states,  until  recognized  by  treaty,  and  thereby  becom> 
ing  a  part  of  international  law.* 

Had  the  United  States  thought  proper  to  issue,  in  1790,  by  virtue  of ' 
their  national  authority,  a  charter  granting  to  Mr.  Gray  the  whole  extent 
of  country  watered,  directly  or  indirectly,  by  the  River  Columbia,  such  a 
charter  would,  no  doubt,  have  been  valid  in  Mr.  Gray's  favor,  as  against 
all  other  citizens  of  the  United  States.  But  can  it  be  supposed  that  it 
would  have  been  acquiesced  in  by  either  of  the  powers.  Great  Britaia 
and  Spain,  which,  in  that  same  year,  were  preparing  to  contest  by  arms 
the  possession  of  the  very  country  which  would  have  been  the  subject  of 
such  a  grant  ? 

If  the  right  of  sovereignty  over  the  territory  in  question  accrues  to 
the  United  States  by  Mr.  Gray's  discovery,  how  happens  it  that  they  never 
protested  against  the  violence  done  to  that  right  by  the  two  powers,  who, 
by  the  convention  of  1790,  regulated  their  respective  rights  in  and  over  a 
district  so  belonging,  as  it  is  now  asserted,  to  the  United  States  ? 

This  claim  of  the  United  States  to  the  territory  drained  by  the  Co- 
lumbia  and  its  tributary  streams,  on  the  ground  of  one  of  their  citizens 
having  been  the  first  to  discover  the  entrance  of  that  river,  has  been  here 
so  far  entered  into,  not  because  it  is  considered  to  be  necessarily  entitled 
to  notice,  since  the  whole  country  watered  by  the  Columbia  falls  within 
the  provisions  of  the  convention  of  1790,  but  because  the  doctrine  above 
alluded  to  has  been  put  forward  so  broadly,  and  with  such  confidence,  by 
the  United  States,  that  Great  Britain  considered  it  equally  due  to  herself 
and  to  other  powers  to  enter  her  protest  against  it. 

The  United  States  further  pretend  that  their  claim  to  the  country  in 
question  is  strengthened  and  confirmed  by  the  discovery  of  the  sources  of 
the  Columbia,  and  by  the  exploration  of  its  course  to  the  sea  by  Lewis 
and  Clarke,  in  1S05-6. 

In  reply  to  this  allegation,  Great  Britain  afiirms,  and  can  distinctly 
prove,  that,  if  not  before,  at  least  in  the  same  and  subsequent  years, 
her  North- Western  Trading  Company  had,  by  means  of  their  agent,  rtr. 
Thomson,  already  established  their  posts  among  the  Flat-head  and  i  x'^ 
tanie  tribes,  on  the  head-waters  of  the  northern  or  main  branch  of  th  t 
Columbia,  and  were  gradually  extending  them  down  the  principal  stream 
of  that  river ;  thus  giving  to  Great  Britain,  in  this  particular,  again,  as  in 
the  discovery  of  the  mouth  of  the  river,  a  title  to  parity  at  least,  if  not 
priority,  of  discovery,  as  opposed  to  the  United  States.  It  was  from  those 
posts,  that,  having  heard  of  the  American  establishment  forming  in  1811, 
at  the  mouth  of  the  river,  Mr.  Thomson  hastened  thither,  descending  the 
river,  to  ascertain  the  nature  of  that  establishment.t 

Some  stress  having  been  laid  by  the  United  States  on  the  restitution 
to  them  of  Fort  George  by  the  British,  after  the  termination  of  the  last 
war,  which  restitution  they  represent  as  conveying  a  virtual  acknowledg- 
ment by  Great  Britain  of  the  title  of  the  United  States  to  the  country  in 
which  that  post  was  situated,  —  it  is  desirable  to  state,  somewhat  in  detail, 
the  circumstances  attending  that  restitution. 


1,1 


•  See  p.  350. 


f  See  p.  291, 297. 


li 


I, 


I     i 


458 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUBTRATIONK. 


[a 


In  the  year  1816,  a  demand  for  the  restoration  of  Fort  George  was 
first  made  to  Great  Britain,  by  the  American  (|overnment,  on  the  plea 
that  the  first  article  of  the  treaty  of  Ghent  stipulated  the  restitution 
to  the  United  States  of  all  posts  and  places  whotsoevcr,  taken  from  them 
by  the  British  during  the  war,  in  which  description  Fort  George  (Astoria) 
wus  included. 

For  some  time  the  British  government  demurred  to  comply  with  the 
demand  of  the  United  States,  because  they  entertained  doubts  how  far  it 
could  be  sustained  by  the  construction  of  the  treaty. 

In  the  first  place,  the  trading  post  called  Fort  Astoria  (or  Fort 
George)  was  not  a  national  possession ;  in  the  second  place,  it  was  not 
a  military  post ;  and,  thirdly,  it  was  never  captured  from  the  Americans 
by  the  British. 

It  was,  in  fact,  conveyed  in  regular  commercial  transfer,  and  ac- 
companied by  a  bill  of  sale,  for  a  sum  of  money,  to  the  British  ".ompany, 
who  purchased  it,  by  the  American  company,  who  sold  it  of  their  own 
free  will. 

It  is  true  that  a  British  sloop  of  war  had,  about  that  time,  been  sent 
to  take  possession  of  that  post,  but  she  arrived  subsequently  to  the  trans- 
action above  mentioned,  between  the  two  companies,  and  found  the  British 
company  already  in  legal  occupation  of  their  self -acquired  property. 

In  consequence,  however,  of  that  ship  having  been  sent  out  with 
hostile  views,  although  those  views  were  not  carried  into  effect,  and  in 
order  that  not  even  the  shadow  of  a  reflection  might  be  cast  upon  the 
good  faith  of  the  British  government,  the  latter  determined  to  give  the 
most  liberal  extension  to  the  terms  of  the  treaty  of  Ghent,  and,  in  1818, 
the  purchase  which  the  British  company  had  made  iif  1813  was  restored 
to  the  United  States.* 

Particular  care,  however,  was  taken,  on  this  occasion,  to  prevent 
any  misapprehension  as  to  the  extent  of  the  concession  made  by  Great 
Britain. 

Viscount  Castlereagh,  in  directing  the  British  minister  at  Washington 
to  intimate  the  intention  of  the  British  government  to  Mr.  Adoms,  then 
secretary  of  state,  uses  these  expressions,  in  a  despatch  dated  4th  of 
February,  1818:  — 

"  You  will  observe,  that,  whilst  this  government  is  not  disposed  to 
contest  with  the  American  government  the  point  of  possession  as  it 
stood  in  the  Columbia  River  at  the  moment  of  the  rupture,  they  are  not 
prepared  to  admit  the  validity  of  the  title  of  the  government  of  the  United 
States  to  this  settlement. 

"  In  signifying,  therefore,  to  Mr.  Adams  the  full  acquiescence  of  your 
government  in  the  reoccupation  of  the  limited  position  which  the  United 
States  held  in  that  river  at  the  breaking  out  of  the  war,  you  will  at  the 
same  time  assert,  in  suitable  tern  s,  the  claim  of  Great  Britain  to  that  terri- 
tory, upon  v^hich  the  American  settlement  must  be  considered  as  an 
encroachment." 

This  instruction  was  executed  verbally  by  the  peraovr  to  whom  it 
was  addressed. 

The  following  is  a  transcript  of  the  act  by  which  the  fort  was 
delivered  up,  by  the  British,  into  the  hands  of  Mr.  Brevost,  the  Amer- 
ican agent: — 

'Saep.  309. 


II.] 


PROOrS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


453 


"  In  obedience  to  the  command  of  H.  R.  H.  the  prince  regent, 
signified  in  a  despatch  from  the  right  honorable  the  Earl  Bathurst, 
addressed  to  the  partners  or  agents  of  the  North- West  Company,  bearing 
date  the  27th  of  January,  1818,  and  in  obedience  to  a  subsequent  order, 
dated  the  26th  July,  from  W.  H.  Sheriff,  Esq.,  captain  of  H.  M.  ship 
Andromache,  We,  the  undersigned,  do,  in  conformity  to  the  first  article 
of  the  treaty  of  Ghent,  restore  to  the  government  of  the  United  States, 
through  its  agent,  J.  P.  Prevost,  Esq.,  the  settlement  of  Fort  George, 
on  the  Columbia  River. 

"  Given  under  our  hands,  in  triplicate,  at  Fort  George,  (Columbia 
River,)  this  Cth  day  of  October,  1818. 

"  F.  HicKEY,  Captain  H,  M.  ship  Blossom. 
••  J.  Keith,  of  the  N.  W.  Co." 

The  following  is  the  despatch  from  Earl  Bathurst  to  the  partners  of 
the  North-West  Company,  referred  to  in  the  above  act  of  cession :  — 

"  DowifiNG  Street,  27(A  January,  1818. 

"Intelligence  having  been  received  that  the  United  States  sloop  of 
war  Ontario  has  been  sent  by  the  American  government  to  establish  a 
settlement  on  the  Columbia  River,  which  was  held  by  that  state,  on 
the  breaking  out  of  the  last  war,  I  am  to  acquaint  you,  that  it  is  the 
prince  regent's  pleasure  {without,  hotoever,  admitting  the  right  of  that 
government  to  the  possession  in  question)  that,  in  pursuance  of  the  first 
article  of  the  treaty  of  Ghent,  due  facility  should  be  given  to  the  reoccu- 
pation  of  the  said  settlement  by  the  officers  of  the  United  States;  and  I  am 
to  desire  that  you  would  contribute  as  much  as  lies  in  your  power  to 
the  execution  of  his  royal  highness's  commands. 

"  I  have,  &c.  &c., 

"  Bathurst. 
"  To  the  Partners  or  Agents  of  the  North-West  Company, 
residing  on  the  Columbia  River." 

The  above  documents  put  the  case  of  the  restoration  of  Fort  Astoria 
in  too  clear  a  light  to  require  further  observation. 

The  case,  then,  of  Great  Britain,  in  respect  to  the  country  west  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  is  shortly  this :  — 

Admitting  thbt  the  United  States  have  acquired  all  the  rights  which 
Spain  possessed,  up  to  the  treaty  of  Florida,  either  in  virtue  of  discovery, 
or,  as  is  pretended,  in  right  of  Louisiana,  Great  Britain  maintains  that  the 
nature  and  extent  of  those  rights,  as  well  as  of  the  rights  of  Great  Britain, 
are  fixed  and  defined  by  the  convention  of  Nootka ;  that  these  rights  are 
equal  for  both  parties ;  and  that,  in  succeeding  to  the  rights  of  Spain, 
under  that  convention,  the  United  States  must  also  have  succeeded  to  the 
obligations  which  it  imposed. 

Admitting,  further,  the  discovery  of  Mr.  Gray,  to  the  extent  already 
stated,  Great  Britain,  taking  the  whole  line  of  the  coast  in  question,  with 
its  straits,  harbors,  and  bays,  has  stronger  claims,  on  the  ground  of  prior 
discovery,  attended  with  acts  of  occupancy  and  settlement,  than  the 
United  States. 

Whether,  therefore,  the  United  States  rest  their  claims  upon  the  title 


464 


PHOOm    AND    ILLUBTHATIONIi. 


% 


i{ 


of  Spain,  or  upon  that  of  prior  discovery,  or  upon  both,  Great  Britain  is 
entitled  to  place  her  claims  at  least  upon  a  parity  with  those  or  the 
United  States. 

It  is  a  fact,  admitted  by  the  United  States,  that,  with  the  exception 
of  the  Columbin  River,  there  is  no  river  which  opens  far  into  the  interior, 
on  the  whole  western  coast  of  the  Pacific  Ocean. 

In  the  interior  of  the  territory  in  question,  the  subjects  of  Great 
Britain  have  had,  for  many  yours,  numerous  settlements  and  trading 
posts  —  several  of  these  posts  on  the  tributnry  streams  of  the  Columbia, 
several  upon  the  Columbia  itself,  some  to  the  northward,  and  c'^««rs  to 
the  southward,  of  that  river ;  and  they  navigate  the  Columbia  as  ti.  4ole 
channel  for  the  conveyance  of  their  produce  to  the  British  stations  ne.i.eHt 
the  sea,  and  for  the  shipment  of  it  from  thence  to  Great  Britain.  It  is 
also  by  the  Columbia  and  its  tributary  streams  that  these  posts  and 
settlements  receive  their  annual  supplies  from  Great  Britain. 

In  the  whole  of  the  territory  in  question,  the  citizens  of  the  Utiited 
States  have  not  a  single  settlement  or  trading  post.  They  do  n  it  uoe 
that  river,  either  for  the  purpose  of  transmitting  or  receiving  any  produce 
of  their  own,  to  or  from  other  parts  of  the  world. 

In  this  state  of  the  relative  rights  of  the  two  countries,  and  of  the 
relative  exercise  of  those  rights,  the  United  States  claim  the  exclusive 
possession  of  both  banks  of  the  Columbia,  and,  consequently,  that  of  the 
river  itself;  offering,  it  is  true,  to  concede  to  British  subjects  a  conditional 
participation  in  that  navigation,  but  subject,  in  any  case,  to  the  exclusive 
jurisdiction  and  sovereignty  of  the  United  States. 

Great  Britain,  on  her  part,  offers  to  make  the  river  the  boundary; 
each  country  retaining  the  bonk  of  the  river  contiguous  to  its  own  ter- 
ritories, and  the  navigation  of  it  remaining  forever  free,  and  upon  a  foot- 
ing of  perfect  equality  to  both  nations. 

To  carry  into  effect  this  proposal,  on  our  part.  Great  Britain  would 
have  to  give  up  posts  and  settlements  south  of  the  Columbia.  On  the 
part  of  the  United  States,  there  could  be  no  reciprocal  withdrawing  from 
actual  occupation,  as  there  is  not,  and  never  has  been,  a  single  American 
citizen  settled  north  of  the  Columbia. 

The  United  States  decline  to  accede  to  this  proposal,  even  when 
Great  Britain  has  added  to  it  the  further  offer  of  a  most  excellent  harbor, 
and  an  extensive  tract  of  country  on  the  Straits  of  De  Fuca  —  a  sacrifice 
tendered  in  the  spirit  of  accommodation,  and  for  the  sake  of  a  final 
adjustment  of  all  differences,  but  which,  having  been  made  in  this  spirit, 
13  not  to  be  considered  as  in  any  degree  recognizing  a  claim  on  the  part 
of  the  United  States,  or  as  at  all  impairing  the  existing  right  of  Great 
Britain  over  the  post  and  territory  in  question^ 

Such  being  the  result  of  the  recent  negotiation,  it  only  remains  for 
Great  Britain  to  maintain  and  uphold  the  qualified  rights  which  she  now 
possesses  over  the  whole  of  the  territory  in  question.  These  rights  are 
recorded  and  defined  in  the  convention  of  Nootka.*  They  embrace  the 
right  to  navigate  the  waters  of  those  countries,  the  right  to  settle  in  and 
over  any  part  of  them,  and  the  right  freely  to  trade  with  the  inhabitants 
and  occupiers  of  the  same. 

These  rights  have   been  peaceably  exercised  ever  since  the  date  of 


*  See  considerations  on  the  Nootka  convention,  at  p.  213. 


f     h 


II.1 


PROOrS    ANU    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


455 


that  convention ;  that  is,  for  a  period  or  near  forty  years.  Under  that 
convention,  valuable  British  intercHts  have  grown  up  in  those  countries. 
It  is  fully  admitted  that  the  United  States  possess  the  same  rights, 
although  they  huve  been  exercised  by  them  only  in  a  •■\i^glc  instance, 
and  have  not,  since  the  year  IS  13,  been  exercised  at  ail.  But  beyond 
these  rights  they  possess  none. 

To  the  interests  and  establishments  which  British  industry  and  enter- 
prise have  created,  Ureat  Britain  owes  protection.  That  protection  will 
be  given,  both  as  regards  settlement  and  freedom  of  trade  and  navigation, 
with  every  attention  not  to  infringe  the  cotirdinate  rights  of  the  United 
States;  it  being  the  earncHt  desire  of  the  British  government,  so  long 
as  the  joint  occupancy  continues,  to  regulate  its  own  obligntions  by  the 
same  rule  which  governs  the  obligations  of  any  other  occupying  party. 

Fully  sensible,  at  the  sunte  time,  of  the  desirableness  of  a  more 
definite  settlement,  as  between  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States,  the 
British  government  will  be  ready,  at  any  time,  to  terminate  the  present 
state  of  joint  occupancy  by  an  agreement  of  delimitation;  but  such 
arrangement  only  can  bu  admitted  as  shall  not  derogate  from  the  rights 
of  Qrent  Britain,  as  acknowledged  by  treaty,  nor  prejudice  the  advantages 
which  British  subjects,  under  the  same  sanction,  now  enjoy  in  that  part 
of  the  world. 

(2.) 

American  Counter-Statement  annexed  to  the  Protocol  of  the  seventh  Con- 
ference, by  Mr.  Gallatin,  the  Plenipotentiary  of  the  Uniied  Stittes. 

The  American  plenipotentiary  has  read  with  attention  the  exposition 
of  the  claims  and  views  of  Great  Britain  in  regard  to  the  territory  west 
of  the  Rocky  or  Stony  Mountains,  annexed  by  the  British  plenipotentia- 
ries to  the  protocol  of  the  last  conference,  and  assures  them  that  it  will 
receive  from  his  government  all  the  consideration  to  which  it  is  so  justly 
entitled. 

He  will  not  make  any  observations  on  that  part  of  the  exposition,  which, 
as  explanatory  of  the  views  of  the  British  government  in  reference  to 
a  continued  joint  occupancy,  he  can  only  refer  to  his  government.  The 
remarks  he  will  now  offer  are  necessarily  limited  to  the  respective  claims 
of  the  two  countries,  and  to  the  proposals  fur  a  definitive  engagement 
which  have  been  made  by  each  party. 

Great  Britain  claims  no  exclusive  sovereignty  ovei  any  portion  of  the 
territory  in  question.  Her  claim  extends  to  the  whole,  but  is  limited  to 
a  right  of  joint  occupancy  in  common  with  other  states,  leaving  the  right 
of  exclusive  dominion  in  abeyance.  She  insists  that  hers  and  Spain's 
conflicting  claims  were  finally  adjusted  by  the  convention  of  Nootka,  in 
1700 ;  that  all  the  arguments  and  pretensions,  whether  resting  upon  prior- 
ity of  discovery,  or  derived  from  any  other  consideration,  were  definitively 
set  at  rest  by  that  convention ;  that,  from  its  date,  it  was  only  in  its  text 
and  stipulations  that  the  title,  either  on  her  part  or  on  that  of  Spain,  was 
to  be  traced ;  and  that  it  was  agreed  by  that  convention,  that  all  the  parts 
of  the  north-west  coast  of  America,  not  previously  occupied  by  either 


111" 


'm\,\ 


456 


FAOOrS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[H. 


m 


! 


party,  should  thenceforward  be  equally  open  to  the  subjects  of  both,  fur 
all  purposes  of  commerce  and  settlement,  the  sovereignty  remaining  in 
abeyance. 

It  is  theq  declared,  that,  in  reference  either  to  the  rights  derived  to  the 
United  States  from  Spain,  by  virtue  of  the  traaty  of  1819,  or  to  that  supposed 
to  be  derived  from  the  acquisition  of  Louisiana,  which  province  did,  in  the 
year  1790,  belong  to  Spain,  the  United  States  have,  with  these  rights, 
necessarily  succeeded  to  the  limitations  by  which  they  were  defined,  and 
the  obligations  under  which  they  were  to  be  exercised,  in  conformity  to 
the  stipulations  of  the  Nootka  convention;  whence  it  is  generally  in- 
ferred, that,  whilst  it  is  fully  admitted  that  the  United  States  possess  the 
same  rights  as  Great  Britain  over  the  country  in  question,  namely,  to 
navigate  its  waters,  to  settle  in  any  part  of  it,  and  freely  to  trade  with  the 
inhabitants  and  occupiers  of  the  same,  beyond  these  rights,  the  United 
States  possessed  none,  and  that  they  cannot,  therefore,  claim  exclusive 
sovereignty  over  any  part  of  the  said  territory. 

It  will,  in  the  first  place,  be  observi.d,  that,  admitting  that  convention 
to  be  still  in  force,  and  of  whatever  construction  it  may  be  susceptible, 
this  compact  between  Spain  and  Great  Britain  could  only  bind  the  parties 
to  it,  and  can  affect  the  claim  of  the  United  States  so  far  only  as  it  is  de. 
rived  from  Spain.  If,  therefore,  ihe3'  have  a  claim  in  right  of  their  own 
discoveries,  explorations,  and  settlements,  as  this  cannot  be  impaired  by 
the  Nootka  convention,  it  becomes  indispensably  necessary,  in  order  to 
defeat  such  claim,  to  show  a  better  prior  title  on  the  part  of  Great  Britain, 
derived  from  some  other  consideration  than  the  stipulations  of  that  con- 
vention. But,  on  examining  that  instrument,  it  will  be  found  to  be  ap- 
parently merely  of  a  commercial  nature,  and  in  no  shape  to  affect  the 
question  of  distinct  jurisdiction  and  exclusive  sovereignty. 

It  was  agreed,  by  that  convention,  "  that  the  respective  subjects  of  the 
two  parties  should  not  be  disturbed  or  molested,  either  in  navigating  or 
carrying  on  their  fisheries  in  the  Pacific  Ocean  or  in  the  South  Seas,  or 
in  landing  on  the  coast  of  those  seas,  in  places  not  already  occupied,  for 
the  purpose  of  carrying  on  their  commerce  with  the  natives  of  the  coun- 
try, or  of  making  settlements  there."     And  further,  "  that  in  all  places 

,  wherever  the  subjects  of  either  shall  have  made  settlements  since 

the  month  of  April,  1789,  or  shall  hereafter  make  any,  the  subjects  of 
the  other  shall  have  free  access,  and  shall  carry  on  their  trade  without  any 
disturbance  or  molestation." 

It  is  difficult  to  believe,  on  reading  those  provisions,  and  recollecting 
in  what  cause  the  convention  originated,  that  any  other  settlements  could 
have  been  contemplated  than  such  as  were  connected  with  the  commerce 
to  be  carried  on  with  the  natives.  Indeed,  it  is  as  being  only  of  a  com- 
mercial nature,  that  the  Nootka  convention  may  be  positively  asserted  to 
be  now  in  force ;  the  commercial  treaties  between  Great  Britain  and 
Spaia  having,  subsequent  to  the  war  which  had  intervened,  been  alone 
renewed  by  the  treaty  of  July,  1814. 

Admitting,  however,  that  the  word  "  settlement "  was  meant  in  its  most 
unlimited  sense,  it  is  evident  that  the  stipulations  had  not  for  object  to 
settle  the  territorial  claims  of  the  parties,  and  had  no  connection  with  an 
ultimate  partition  of  the  country,  for  the  purpose  of  permanent  coloni- 
zation. 

Those  stipulations  permitted  promiscuous  and  intermixed  settlements 


li 


H] 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


457 


every  where,  and  over  the  whole  face  of  the  country,  to  the  subjects  of 
both  parties,  and  even  declared  every  such  settlement,  made  by  either 
party,  in  a  degree  common  to  the  other.  Such  a  state  of  things  is  clearly 
incompatible  with  distinct  jurisdiction  and  sovereignty.  The  convention, 
therefore,  could  have  had  no  such  object  in  view  as  to  fix  the  relations  of 
the  contracting  powers  in  that  respect.  On  that  subject  it  established  or 
changed  nothing,  but  left  the  parties  where  it  found  them,  and  in  posses- 
sion of  all  such  rights,  whether  derived  from  discovery,  or  from  any  other 
consideration,  as  belonged  to  each,  to  be  urged  by  each,  whenever  the 
question  of  permanent  and  separate  possession  and  sovereignty  came  to 
be  discussed  between  them. 

It  is,  indeed,  expressly  admitted  that  the  convention  provided  for  com- 
merce and  settlements,  leaving  the  sovereignty  in  abeyance.  And  Great 
Britain,  at  this  time,  claims  only  a  right  of  joint  occupancy,  in  common 
with  other  nations,  leaving  the  right  o(  exclusive  dominion  in  abeyance.  It 
is  not  perceived  how  it  can,  at  the  same  time,  be  asserted  that  the  argu- 
ments and  pretensions  of  both  parties  were  definitively  set  at  rest  by  the 
convention,  and  that  it  is  only  in  its  text  and  stipulations  that  the  title  on 
either  side  is  now  to  be  traced. 

Commerce  and  settlements  might,  indeed,  be  made  by  either  party, 
during  the  joint  occupancy,  without  regard  to  their  respective  pretension 
or  title,  from  whatever  consideration  derived.  But  since  the  sovereignty, 
since  the  right  of  exclusive  dominion,  has  been  left  in  abeyance,  that  right 
over  any  part  of  the  country,  to  whichever  party  belonging,  has  not  been 
extinguished,  but  only  suspended,  and  must  revive  to  its  full  extent  when- 
ever that  joint  occupancy  may  cease. 

Whenever,  therefore,  a  final  line  of  demarkation  becomes  the  subject 
of  discussion,  the  United  States  have  a  right,  notwithstanding,  and  in 
conformity  to  the  Nootka  convention,  to  appeal,  in  support  of  their  claims, 
not  only  to  their  own  discoveries,  but  to  all  the  rights  derived  from  the 
acquisition  of  Louisiana,  and  from  their  treaty  of  1819  with  Spain,  in  the 
same  manner  as  if  that  convention  had  never  been  made.  The  question 
to  be  examined  is,  whether  those  claims  are  supported  by  the  laws  and 
usages  of  nations. 

It  may  be  admitted,  as  an  abstract  principle,  that,  in  the  origin  of  soci- 
ety, first  occupancy  and  cultivation  were  the  foundation  of  the  rights  of 
private  property  and  of  national  sovereignty.  But  that  principle,  on  which 
principally,  if  not  exclusively,  it  would  seem  that  the  British  government 
wishes  to  rely,  could  be  permitted,  in  either  case,  to  operate  alone,  and 
without  restriction,  so  long  only  as  the  extent  of  vacant  territory  was 
such,  in  proportion  to  population,  that  there  was  ample  room  *br  every 
individual,  and  for  every  distinct  community  or  nation,  without  danger  of 
collision  with  others.  As,  in  every  society,  it  had  soon  become  necessary 
to  make  laws,  regulating  the  manner  in  which  its  members  should  be 
permitted  to  occupy  and  to  acquire  vacant  land  within  its  acknowledged 
boundaries,  so,  also,  nations  found  it  indispensable  for  the  preservation 
of  peace,  and  for  the  exercise  of  distinct  jurisdiction,  to  adopt,  particu- 
larly after  the  discovery  of  America,  some  general  rules,  which  should 
determine  the  important  previous  question,  "  Who  had  a  right  to  occupy?" 

The  two  rules  generally,  perhaps  universally,  recognized  and  conse- 
crated by  the  usage  of  nations,  have  flowed  from  the  nature  of  the  subject. 

By  virtue  of  the  first,  prior  discovery  gave  a  right  to  occupy,  provided 

58 


;      t'  I  ■    '    '  i 


I 


!    ! 


..h, 


If 


468 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Il 


fl 
'■I 


that  occupancy  took  place  within  a  reasonable  time,  and  was  ultimately 
followed  by  permanent  settlements,  and  by  the  cultivation  of  the  soil. 

In  conformity  with  the  second,  the  right  derived  from  prior  discovery 
and  settlement  was  not  confined  to  the  spot  so  discovered  or  first  settled. 
The  extent  of  territory  which  would  attach  to  such  first  discovery  or  set- 
tlement might  not,  in  every  case,  be  precisely  determined.  But  that  the 
first  discovery,  and  subsequent  settlement,  within  a  reasonable  time,  of 
the  mouth  of  a  river,  particularly  if  none  of  its  branches  had  been  ex- 
plored prior  to  such  discovery,  gave  the  right  of  occupancy,  and,  ulti- 
mately, of  sovereignty,  to  the  whole  country  drained  by  such  river  and  its 
several  branches,  has  been  generally  admitted.  And,  in  a  question  be- 
tween the  United  States  and  Great  Britain,  her  acts  have,  with  propriety, 
been  appealed  to,  as  showing  that  the  principles  on  which  they  rely  accord 
with  her  own. 

It  is,  however,  n6w  contended  that  the  British  charters,  extending,  in 
most  cases,  from  the  Atlantic  Ocean  to  the  South  Seas,  must  be  consid- 
ered as  cessions  of  the  sovereign  to  certain  grantees,  to  the  exclusion  only 
of  his  other  subjects,  and  as  of  no  validity  against  the  subjects  of  other 
states.  This  construction  does  not  appear  either  to  have  been  that  in- 
tended at  the  time  by  the  grantors,  nor  to  have  governed  the  subsequent 
conduct  of  Great  Britain. 

By  excepting  from  the  grants,  as  was  generally  the  case,  such  lands  as 
were  already  occupied  by  the  subjects  of  other  civilized  nations,  it  was 
clearly  implied  that  no  other  exception  was  contemplated,  and  that  the 
grants  were  intended  to  include  all  the  unoccupied  lands  within  their  re- 
spective boundaries,  to  the  exclusion  of  all  other  persons  or  nations  what- 
soever. In  point  of  fact,  the  whole  country  drained  by  the  several  rivers 
emptying  into  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  the  mouths  of  which  were  within  those 
charters,' has,  from  Hudson's  Bay  to  Florida,  and,  it  is  believed,  without 
exceptimi,  been  occupied  and  held  by  virtue  of  those  charters.  Not  only 
has  this  principle  been  fully  confirmed,  but  it  has  been  notoriously  en- 
forced, much  beyond  the  sources  of  the  rivers  on  which  the  settlements 
were  formed.  The  priority  of  the  French  settlements  on  the  rivers  flow- 
ing westwardly  from  the  Alleghany  Mountains  into  the  Mississippi,  was 
altogether  disregarded ;  and  the  rights  of  the  Atlantic  Colonies  to  extend 
beyond  those  mountains,  as  growing  out  of  the  contiguity  of  territory, 
and  as  asserted  in  the  earliest  charters,  was  effectually  and  successfully 
enforced. 

It  is  true,  that  the  two  general  rules  which  have  been  mentioned  might 
often  conflict  with  each  other.  Thus,  in  the  instance  just  alluded  to,  the 
discovery  of  the  main  branch  of  the  Mississippi,  including  the  mouth  of 
that  river,  and  the  occupation  of  the  intervening  province  of  Louisiana  by 
another  nation,  gave  rise,  at  last,  to  a  compromise  of  those  conflicting 
claims,  Rnd  induced  Great  Britain  to  restrain  hers  within  narrower  limits 
than  those  originally  designated. 

But  it  is  the  peculiar  character  of  the  claim  of  the  United  States,  that 
it  is  founded  on  both  principles,  which,  in  this  case,  unite  both  in  its  sup- 
port, and  convert  it  into  an  incontestable  right.  It  is  in  vain  that,  in 
order  to  avert  that  conclusion,  an  attempt  is  made  to  consider  the  several 
grounds  on  which  that  right  is  urged,  as  incompatible  one  with  the  other, 
as  if  the  United  States  were  obliged  to  select  only  one,  and  to  abandon 
the  others.    In  difierent  hands,  the  several  claims  would  conflict  one  vith 


V 


ill 


H.] 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


459^ 


the  other.  Now,  -n  in  the  same  power,  they  support  each  other. 
The  possessors  of  Lo<>  una  might  have  contended,  on  the  ground  of  con- 
tiguity, for  the  adjacent  territory  on  tlie  Pacific  Ocean,  with  the  di»> 
coveries  of  the  coast  and  of  its  main  rivers.  The  several  discoveries  of 
the  Spanish  and  American  navigators  might  separately  have  been  consid* 
ered  as  so  many  steps  in  the  progress  of  discovery,  and  giving  only 
imperfect  claims  to  each  party.  All  those  various  claims,  from  whatever 
consideration  derived,  are  now  brought  united  against  the  pretensions  of 
any  other  nation. 

Ist.  The  actual  possession  an''  populous  settlements  of  the  valley  of 
the  Mississippi,  including  Louisiana,  and  now  under  one  sovereignty,  con* 
stitute  a  strong  claim  to  the  westwardly  extension  of  that  province  over 
the  contiguous  vacant  territory,  and  to  the  occupation  and  sovereignty  of 
the  country  as  far  as  the  Pacific  Ocean.  If  some  trading  factories  on  the 
shores  of  Hudson's  Bay  have  been  considered,  by  Great  Britain,  as  giving 
an  exclusive  right  of  occupancy  as  far  as  the  Rocky  Mountains ;  if  the 
infant  settlements  on  the  more  southern  Atlantic  shores  justified  a  claim 
thence  to  the  South  Seas,  and  which  was  actually  enforced  to  the  Missis- 
sippi, that  of  the  millions  already  within  reach  of  those  seas  cannot  con- 
sistently be  resisted.  For  it  will  not  be  denied  that  the  extent  of 
contiguous  territory,  to  which  an  actual  settlement  gives  a  prior  right, 
must  depend,  in  a  considerable  degree,  on  the  magnitude  and  population 
of  that  settlement,  and  on  the  facility  with  which  the  vacant  adjacent  land 
may,  within  a  short  time,  be  occupied,  settled,  and  cultivated,  by  such 
population,  as  'compared  with  the  probability  of  its  being  thus  occupied 
and  settled  from  any  other  quarter. 

It  has  been  objected  that,  in  the  grant  of  Louisiana  to  Crozat,  by  Louis 
XIV.,  that  province  is  described  as  "the  country  drained  by  the  wa- 
ters emptying,  directly  or  indirectly,  into  the  Mississippi,  excluding 
thereby,  by  implication,  the  country  drained  by  the  waters  emptying  into 
the  Pacific. 

Crozat's  grant  was  not  for  the  whole  of  the  province  of  Louisiana,  as  it 
was  aflerwards  extended  by  France  herself,  and  as  it  is  now  held  by  the 
United  States.  It  was  bounded,  in  that  grant  of  1713,  by  Carolina  to  the 
east,  by  New  Mexico  to  the  west,  and  on  the  north  by  the  Illinois,  which 
were  then  part  of  Canada.  The  most  northerly  branches  of  the  Missis- 
sippi embraced  in  the  grant  were  the  Ohio,  at  that  time  called  Wabash 
by  the  French,  and  the  Missouri,  the  true  course  of  which  was  not 
known  at  that  time,  and  the  sources  of  which  were  not  supposed  to  ex- 
tend north  of  the  42d  parallel  of  latitude.  No  territory  on  the  west  of 
the  Mississippi  was  intended  to  be  included  in  the  grant  north  of  that  par- 
allel ;  and  as  New  Mexico,  which  bounded  it  on  the  west,  was  understood 
to  extend  even  farther  north,  it  was  impossible  that  any  territory  should 
have  been  included  west  of  the  sources  of  the  rivers  emptying  into  the 
Mississippi. 

All  the  territory  north  of  the  42d  parallel  of  latitude,  claimed  by  France, 
was  included  at  that  time,  not  in  Louisiana,  but  in  the  government  of  New 
France,  as  Canada  was  then  called.  And  by  referring  to  the  most  authen- 
tic French  maps,  it  will  be  seen  that  New  France  was  made  to  extend 
over  the  territory  drained,  or  supposed  to  be  drained,  by  rivers  entering 
into  the  South  Seas.  The  claim  to  a  westwardly  extension  to  those  seas, 
was  thus  early  asserted  as  part,  not  of  Louisiana,  bi)t  of  New  France. 


:     I 


\b      ■  I 


u 


■.J 


mr^ 


460 


PROOFS    AND    IliLUSTRATIONS. 


[H. 


if 


4 


The  king  had  reserred  to  himself,  in  Crozat's  grant,  the  right  of  enlarging 
the  government  of  Louisiana.  Tliis  was  done  by  an  ordonnance  dated  in 
the  yeur  1717,  which  annexed  the  Illinois  to  it;  iind,  from  tliat  time,  the 
province  extended  as  fur  as  the  most  northern  limit  of  the  French  posses- 
sions in  North  America,  and  thereby  west  of  Canada  or  New  France. 
The  settlement  of  that  northern  limit  still  further  strengthens  the 
claim  of  the  United  States  to  the  territory  west  of  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains. 

The  limits  between  the  northerly  possessions  of  Great  Britain,  in 
North  America,  and  those  of  France,  in  the  same  quarter,  namely,  Can- 
ada and  Louisiana,  were  determined  by  commissioners  appointed  in  pur- 
suance of  the  treaty  of  Utrecht.  From  the  coast  of  Labrador  to  a  certain 
point  north  of  Lake  Superior,  those  limits  were  fixed  according  to  certain 
metes  and  bounds,  and  from  that  point  the  line  of  demarkation  was 
agreed  to  extend  indeliniieiy  due  west,  along  the  49th  parallel  of  north 
latitude.  It  was  in  conformity  with  that  arrangement  that  the  United 
States  did  claim  that  parallel  as  the  northern  boundary  of  Louisiana.  It 
has  been,  accordingly,  thus  settled,  as  far  as  the  Stony  Mountains,  by  the 
convention  of  1818,  between  the  United  States  and  Great  Britain;  and 
no  adequate  reason  can  be  given  why  the  same  boundary  should  not  be 
continued  as  far  as  the  claims  of  the  United  States  do  extend ;  that  is  to 
say,  as  far  as  the  Pacific  Ocean.  This  argument  is  not  weakened  by  the 
fact,  that  the  British  settlements  west  of  the  Stony  Mountains  are  solely 
due  to  the  extension  of  those  previously  formed  on  the  waters  emptying 
into  Hudson's  Bay  ;  and  it  is  from  respect  to  a  demarkation;  considered  as 
binding  on  the  parties,  that  the  United  States  had  consented  to  confine 
their  claim  to  the  49th  parallel  of  latitude,  namely,  to  a  territory  of  the 
same  breadth  as  Louisiana  east  of  the  Stony  Mountains,  although,  as 
founded  on  prior  discoveries,  that  claim  would  have  extended  much  farther 
north. 

2dly.  The  United  States  have  an  undoubted  right  to  claim,  by  virtue 
both  of  the  Spanish  discoveries  and  of  their  own.  Setting  aside  all  those 
which  are  not  supported  by  authentic  evidence,  some  of  the  most  impor- 
tant were  made  by  Spanish  navigators  prior  to  Cook's  voyage.  In  1774, 
Perez,  in  the  Spanish  corvette  Santiago,  discovered  Nootka  Sound,  in 
latitude  49°  30',  and  sailed  to  the  55th  degree,  discovering  Lougara 
Island  and  Perez  (now  called  Dixon's)  Entrance,  north  of  Queen  Char- 
lotte Island.  In  1775,  Quadra,  in  the  Spanish  schooner  Felicidad,  of 
which  Maurelle  v/as  pilot,  discovered  various  ports  between  the  5.7th 
and  58th  degrees,  and  explored  the  coast  from  42°  to  54°,  landing  at 
several  places,  imposing  names  to  some,  and  not  being,  at  any  time, 
hardly  more  than  ten  leagues  from  the  shore. 

In  other  Spanish  voyages  of  a  subsequent  date,  those  of  Arteaga  and 
Quadra  in  1779,  and  of  Martinez  and  Haro  in  1786,  various  other  parts 
of  the  north-west  coast  were  explored,  as  far  north  as  the  60th  degree  of 
north  latitude. 

The  Straits  of  Fuca  were  discovered,  or  again  found,  in  1787,  by  Cap- 
tain Barclay,  of  the  Imperial  Eagle,  a  vessel  fitted  out  at  Ostend.  The 
entrance  was,  in  1788,  again  visited  by  the  English  Captains  Meares  and 
Duncan.  In  the  same  year,  Captain  Gray,  of  the  American  sloop  Wash- 
ing'on,  (who  arrived  at  Nootka  in  September,  coming  from  the  south, 
where  he  had  landed,)  penetrated  fifty  miles  up  the  straits.    They  were 


ff 


f1 


'f:m 


H.1 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


461 


explored  in  1791,  by  the  Spiinish  Captnins  Quimpa  and  Eliza,  beyond  the 
60th  degree  of  latitude.  Their  complete  survtj',  and  the  discovery  of 
the  northern  outlet,  in  1702,  are  due  principally  to  Captain  Vancouver, 
who  sailed  through  them  in  company  with  the  Spanish  vessels  Sutil  and 
Mexicana. 

The  discovery,  which  belongs  exclusively  to  the  United  States,  and  in 
their  own  right,  is  that  of  the  River  Columbia. 

The  continuity  of  the  coast  from  the  42d  to  the  48th  degree  of  latitude, 
had  been  ascertained  by  the  voyage  of  Quadra,  in  1775,  and  confirmed 
by  that  of  Captain  Cook  in  1778.  The  object  of  discovery  thenceforth, 
was  that  of  a  large  river,  which  should  open  a  communicdtion  with 
the  interior  of  the  country.  This  had  escaped  Quadra,  who  had  sailed  in 
sight  of  the  entrance  atlerwards  discovered.  Meares  failed  likewise  in  his 
attempt,  in  the  year  1788,  to  make  the  discovery.  Captain  Vancouver 
was  not  more  fortunate.  Afler  having  also  sailed  along  the  coast,  from 
south  to  north,  to  the  48th  degree,  he  recorded  in  his  journal  of  the  29th 
April,  1792,  which  he  had  too  much  probity  afterwards  to  alter,  his  opin- 
ion that  there  was  no  large  river  south  of  48°,  but  only  small  creeks.  On 
the  ensuing  day  he  met  at  sea  with  Captain  Gray,  then  commanding  the 
American  ship  "  Columbia,"  who  informed  him  of  the  existence  of  the 
river,  at  the  mouth  of  which  he  (Gray)  had  been  for  several  days  without 
being  able  to  enter  it. 

Captain  Vancouver  proceeded  to  Fuca's  Straits,  and  Captain  Gray 
returned  to  the  south,  where  he  completed  his  discovery,  having,  on  the 
11th  May,  entered  the  river  which  bears  the  name  of  his  ship,  and  as- 
cended it  upwards  of  twenty  miles.  He  then,  having  also  discovered 
Gray's  Harbor,  went  to  Nootka  Sound,  where  he  again  met  with  Captain 
Vancouver,  to  whom  he  communicated  his  discoveries,  and  gave  him  a 
rough  chart  of  the  river.  With  this  information,  one  of  Captain  Vancou- 
ver's officers  was  sent  to  take  a  survey  of  Gray's  Harbor,  and  another  that 
of  the  Columbia  River,  which  he  ascended  about  eight  miles  higher  up 
than  Gray. 

Yet,  in  order  to  found  a  claim  derived  from  a  share  in  the  discovery, 
that  of  Captain  Gray  is  called  only  a  step  in  the  progress  of  discovery  ; 
and  it  is  attempted  to  divide  its  merit  between  him,  Meares,  and  Captain 
Vancouver's  officer. 

It  must  again  be  repeated,  that  the  sole  object  of  discovery  was 
"  the  river,"  and,  coming  from  sea,  the  mouth  of  the  river.  Meares 
only  followed  Quadra's  track.  Had  he  suggested  or  suspected  the  ex- 
istence of  a  river,  when  he  was  near  its  entrance,  it  would  have  been  a 
step  in  the  progress  of  discovery.  So  far  from  it,  that,  in  his  map,  he  has 
laid  the  presumed  mouth  of  the  great  river  of  the  west,  of  the  tradi- 
tional Oregon,  of  the  real  Columbia,  in  the  Straits  of  Fuca.  The  very 
names  which  he  imposed,  Cape  Disappointment  and  Deception  Bay,  attest 
his  failure. 

Captain  Vancouver,  having  completed  his  survey  of  that  part  of  the 
coast,  with  a  conviction  that  no  large  river  emptied  there  into  the  ocean, 
would  not  have  explored  it  again,  had  he  not  received  the  information  from 
Captain  Gray  of  his  discoveries.  And,  in  fact,  in  his  second  visit  to  that 
quarter,  he  surveyed,  or  caused  to  be  surveyed,  only  the  harbor  and  the 
river  which  had  been  indicated  to  him.     The  lieutenant  sent  to  the  Co* 


|i:!'r 


462 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[H. 


I 


lumbia,  and  who  never  would  have  gone  there  had  it  not  been  for  Captain 
Qray's  information,  performed,  no  doubt,  with  fidelity,  the  mechanical 
duty  of  taking  the  soundings  one  hundred  miles  up  its  course.  In  that 
consists  his  sole  merit :  in  the  discovery  he  had  not  the  slightest  share. 
The  important  services  rendered  to  navigation  and  to  science,  by  that  offi- 
cer and  by  Captain  Vancouver,  are  fully  acknowledged ;  and  their  well- 
earned  reputation  cannot  be  increased  by  ascribing  to  them  what  exclu- 
sively belongs  to  another. 

Louisiana  having  been  acquired  by  the  United  States  in  1803,  an 
expedition  was  immediately  ordered  by  government  to  examine  its  west- 
ern districts.  In  the  course  of  this,  Captains  Lewis  and  Clarke  ascended 
the  Missouri  to  its  source,  crossed  the  Rocky  Mountains,  and  ex- 
plored the  course  of  the  Columbia,  from  its  most  eastern  sources  to  its 
mouth,  where  they  arrived  on  the  Gth  of  November,  If  0.5.  There  they 
erected  the  works  called  Fort  Clatsop,  and  wintered  in  805-1806.  And 
thus  was  the  discovery  of  the  river  commenced  a- id  completed  by 
the  United  States,  before,  as  it  is  firmly  believed,  .ny  settlement  had 
been  made  on  it,  or  any  of  its  branches  been  explored,  by  any  other 
nation. 

This  is  corroborated  by  the  statement  of  the  British  {^enipotentiaries. 
After  having  given,  as  the  date  of  Lewis  and  Clarke's  exploration,  not 
the  year  1805,  but  the  years  1805-1806,  they  assert  that,  if  not  before,  at 
least  in  the  same  and  subsequent  years,  Mr.  Thomson  had  already  estab- 
lished a  post  on  the  heaJ-waters  of  the  northern  or  main  branch  of  the 
Columbia.  Had  that  post  been  established  in  1805,  before  Lewis  and 
Clarke's  exploration,  another  and  more  distinct  mode  of  expression  would 
have  been  adopted.  But  it  cannot  be  seriously  contended  that,  if  Mr. 
Thomson  had,  in  that  year,  reached  one  of  the  sources  of  the  Colum- 
bia, north  of  the  50th  degree  of  latitude,  this,  compared  with  the 
complete  American  exploration,  would  give  to  Great  Britain  "  a  title 
to  parity,  at  least,  if  not  priority  of  discovery,  as  opposed  to  the  United 
States." 

In  the  year  1810,  Mr.  Astor,  a  citizen  of  the  United  States,  fitted  out 
two  expeditions  for  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia ;  one  by  sea,  and  the  other 
by  land,  from  the  Missouri.  In  March,  181 1,  the  establishment  of  Astoria 
was  accordingly  commenced  near  the  mouth  of  the  river,  before  any  Brit- 
ish settlement  had  been  made  south  of  the  49th  parallel  of  latitude. 
From  that  principal  post,  several  Other  settlements  were  formed ;  one  of 
them,  contrary  to  the  opinion  entertained  by  the  British  plenipotentiaries, 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Wanahata,  severiil  hundred  miles  up,  and  on  the  right 
bank  of  the  Columbia. 

These  establishments  fell  into  the  hands  of  the  British  during  the 
war  ;  and  that  of  Astoria  has  since  been  formally  restored,  in  conformity 
with  the  treaty  of  Ghent.  On  the  circumstances  of  that  restitution,  it  is 
sufficient  to  observe,  that,  with  the  various  despatches  from  and  to  the 
officers  of  the  British  government,  the  United  States  have  no  concern ; 
that  it  is  not  stated  how  the  verbal  communications  of  the  British  minister 
at  Washington  were  received,  nor  whether  the  American  government 
consented  to  accept  the  restitution,  with  the  reservation,  as  expressed  in 
the  despatches  to  that  minister  from  his  government ;  and  that  the  only 
written  document  affecting  the  restoration,  known  to  be  in  possession  of 


H.1 


PROOra    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


463 


ring 


that  of  the  United  States,  is  the  act  of  restoration  itself,  which  contains 
no  exception,  reservation,  or  protest,  whatever. 

It  has  thus  been  established,  that  the  Columbia  River  was  first  discov- 
ered by  the  United  States ;  that  that  first  discovery  was  attended  by  a  com- 
plete exploration  of  the  river,  from  its  most  easterly  source  to  the  north, 
before  any  such  exploration  had  been  made  by  any  other  nation ;  by  a 
simultaneous  actual  occupation  and  possession,  and  by  subsequent  estab- 
lishments and  settlements  made  within  a  reasonable  time,  and  which  have 
been  interrupted  only  by  the  casualties  of  war. 

This,  it  is  contended,  gives,  according  to  the  acknowledged  law  and 
usages  of  nations,  a  right  to  the  whole  country  drained  by  that  river  and 
by  its  tributary  streams,  which  could  have  been  opposed  only  by  the  con- 
flicting claim  derived  from  the  possession  of  Louisiana.  Both,  united  and 
strengthened  by  the  other  Spanish  and  American  discoveries  along  the 
coast,  (and,  without  reference^to  the  cession  of  the  pretensions  of  Spain^ 
derived  from  other  considerations,)  establish,  it  is  firmly  believed,  a 
stronger  title  to  the  country  above  described,  and  along  the  coast  as  far 
north,  at  least,  as  the  49th  parallel  of  latitude,  than  has  ever,  at  any  for- 
mer time,  been  asserted  by  any  nation  to  vacant  territory. 

Before  the  subject  is  dismissed,  it  may  be  proper  to  observe,  that  the 
United  States  had  no  motive,  in  the  year  1790,  to  protest  against  the 
Nootka  convention,  since  their  exclusive  right  to  the  territory  on  the 
Pacific  originated  in  Gray's  discovery,  which  took  place  only  in  1792. 
Ths  acquisition  of  Louisiana,  and  their  last  treaty  with  Spain,  are  still 
posterior. 

On  the  formality  called  "  taking  possession,"  though  no  actual  pos- 
session of  the  country  is  taken,  and  on  the  validity  of  sales  of  land  and 
surrender  of  sovereignty  by  Indians,  who  are  for  the  first  time  brought 
into  contact  with  civilized  men  ;  who  have  no  notion  of  what  they  mean 
by  either  sovereignty  or  property  in  land  ;  who  do  not  even  know  what 
cultivation  is ;  with  whom  it  is  difficult  to  communicate,  even  upon  visible 
objects ;  the  American  plenipotentiary  thinks  that  he  may  abstain  from 
making  any  remarks. 

Whilst  supporting  their  claim  by  arguments,  which  they  think  conclu- 
sive, the  United  States  have  not  been  inattentive  to  the  counter  claims  of 
Great  Britain. 

They,  indeed,  deny  that  the  trading  posts  of  the  North-West  Company 
give  any  title  to  the  territory  claimed  by  America,  not  only  because  no 
such  post  was  established  within  the  limits  claimed  when  the  first  Ameri- 
can settlement  was  made,  but  because  the  title  of  the  United  States  is  con- 
sidered as  having  been  complete,  before  any  of  those  traders  had  appeared 
on  the  waters  of  the  Columbia.  It  is  also  believed,  that  mere  factories, 
established  solely  for  the  purpose  of  trafficking  with  the  natives,  and  with- 
out any  view  to  cultivation  and  permanent  settlement,  cannot,  of  them- 
selves, and  unsupported  by  any  other  consideration,  give  any  better  title  to 
dominion  and  absolute  sovereignty,  than  similar  establishments  mrde  in  a 
civilized  country. 

But  the  United  States  have  paid  due  regard  to  the  discoveries  by 
which  the  British  navigators  have  so  eminently  distinguished  themselves, 
to  those,  perhaps  not  less  remarkable,  made  by  land  from  the  upper 
lakes  of  the  Pacific,  and  to  the  contiguity  of  the  possessions  of  Great 


'Jli^ 


I!  i| 


464 


PROOFS    ANU    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[H. 


;    1 


Britain,  on  the  waters  of  Hudson's  Bay,  to  the  territory  bordering  on  that 
ocean.  Above  all,  they  have  been  earnestly  desirous  to  preserve  and 
cherish,  not  only  the  peaceful,  but  the  friendly  relations,  which  hnppily 
subsist  between  the  two  countries.  And,  with  that  object  in  view,  their 
offer  of  a  permanent  line  of  demarkation  has  been  made,  under  a  perfect 
conviction  that  it  was  attended  with  the  sacrifice  of  a  portion  of  what  they 
might  justly  claim. 

Viewed  as  a  matter  of  mutual  convenience,  and  with  equal  desire,  on 
both  sides,  to  avert,  by  a  definitive  line  of  delimitation,  any  possible  cause 
of  collision  in  that  quarter,  every  consideration  connected  with  the  sub- 
ject may  be  allowed  its  due  weight. 

If  the  present  state  of  occupancy  is  urged,  on  the  part  of  Great 
Britain,  the  probability  of  the  manner  in  which  the  territory  west  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains  must  be  settle  j,  belongs  also  essentially  to  the  subject. 
Under  whatever  nominal  sovereignty  that  country  may  be  placed,  and 
whatever  its  ultimate  destinies  may  be,  it  is  nearly  reduced  to  a  certainty, 
that  it  will  be  almost  exclusively  peopled  by  the  surplus  population  of 
the  United  States.  The  distance  from  Great  Britain,  and  the  expense  in- 
cident to  emigration,  forbid  the  expectation  of  any  being  practicable, 
from  that  quarter,  but  on  a  comparatively  small  scale.  Allowing  the  rate 
of  increase  to  be  the  same  in  the  United  States,  and  in  the  North  Ameri- 
can British  possessions,  the  difference  in  the  actual  population  of  both  is 
such,  that  the  progressive  rate  which  would,  within  forty  years,  add  three 
millions  to  these,  would,  within  the  same  tinie,  give  a  positive  increase  of 
more  than  twenty  millions  to  the  United  States.  And  if  circumstances, 
arising  from  localities  and  habits,  have  given  superior  facilities  to  British 
subjects,  of  extending  their  commerce  with  the  natives,  and  to  that  expan- 
sion which  has  the  appearance,  and  the  appearance  only,  of  occupancy,  — 
the  slower  but  sure  progress  and  extention  of  an  agricultural  population, 
will  be  regulated  by  distance,  by  natural  obstacles,  and  by  its  own  amount. 
The  primitive  right  of  acquiring  property  and  sovereignty,  by  occupancy 
alone,  admitting  it  to  be  unlimited  in  theory,  cannot  extend  beyond  the 
capacity  of  occupying  and  cultivating  the  soil. 

It  may  also  be  observed;  that,  in  reality,  there  were  but  three  na- 
tions which  had  both  the  right  and  the  power  to  colonize  the  territory 
in  question  —  Great  Britain,  the  United  States,  and  Spain,  or  now  the 
new  American  states.  These  are  now  excluded,  in  consequence  of  the 
treaty  of  1819.  The  United  States,  who  have  purchased  their  right  for  a 
valuable  consideration,  stand  now  in  their  place,  and,  on  that  ground,  in 
the  view  entertained  of  the  subject  by  the  British  government,  are,  on  a 
final  partition  of  the  country,  fairly  entitled  to  two  shares. 

Under  all  the  circumstances  of  the  case,  as  stated  on  both  sides,  the 
United  States  offer  a  line,  which  leaves  to  Great  Britain  by  far  the  best 
portion  of  the  fur  trade,  —  the  only  object,  at  this  time,  of  the  pursuits  of 
her  subjects  in  that  quarter,  —  and  a  much  greater  than  her  proportionate 
share  of  the  country,  with  a  view  to  its  permanent  settlement,  if  the  rela- 
tive geographical  situation,  and  means  of  colonizing,  of  both  parties  are 
taken  into  consideration.  From  the  42d  degree  of  north  latitude  to 
the  Observatory  Inlet,  in  about  55°  30',  there  is  a  front  on  the  Pacific 
of  almost  fourteen  degrees  of  latitude,  which  the  49th  parallel  divides 
into  two  nearly  equal  parts.     The  mouth  of  the  Columbia  River,  if 


[H. 

Dg  on  that 
serve  and 
ch  happily 
fiew,  their 
r  a  perfect 
what  they 

desire,  on 
sible  cause 
ih  the  Bub- 

of  Great 
ivest  of  the 
;he  subject, 
ilaced,  and 
a  certainty, 
julation  of 
expense  in- 
practicable, 
ing  the  rate 
orth  Ameri- 
n  of  both  is 
8,  add  three 
increase  of 
cumstances, 
.3  to  British 
that  expan- 
cupancy, — 
population, 
wn  amount, 
occupancy 
beyond  the 

It  three  na- 

|the  territory 
or  now  tlie 
lence  of  the 

ir  right  for  a 
groundj  in 

|nt,  are,  on  a 

Ih  sides,  the 
1  far  the  best 

I  pursuits  of 
Iroportionate 
\  if  the  rela- 

I  parties  are 
latitude  to 
the  Pacific 

lllel  divides 

k  River,  if 


I-] 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


V 

465 


accepted  as  a  boundary,  would  leave  less  than  one  third  to  the  United 
States. 

The  offer  of  the  frqp  navigation  of  that  river,  when  the  whole  territory, 
drained  by  all  its  tributary  streams,  including  the  northernmost  branches, 
might  have  been  justly  claimed,  would  have  also  given  to  Great  Britain, 
in  time  of  peace,  all  the  commercial  advantages  which  it  can  afford  to 
the  Americans. 

'  In  the  case  of  a  war,  (which  God  forbid,)  whatever  might  be  the  result 
on  shore,  the  line  proposed  by  Great  Britain,  even  with  the  addition  of 
the  detached  and  defenceless  territory  she  offered,  would  leave  the  sea 
border  at  her  mercy,  and  the  United  States  without  a  single  port ;  whilst 
the  boundary  proposed  by  them  might,  during  that  period,  deprive  Great 
Britain  only  of  the  use  of  the  port  at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  and 
would  leave  her  in  the  secure  possession  of  numerous  seaports,  perhaps  less 
convenient,  but  still  affording  ample  means  of  communication  with  the 
interior.  That  line,  indeed,  with  such  slight  reciprocal  modifications  as 
the  topography  of  the  country  may  indicate,  would  establish  the  most 
natural  and  mutually-defensibl<'  boundary  that  can  be  found,  and,  for  that 
reason,  the  least  liable  to  collision,  and  the  best  calculated  to  perpetuate 
peace  and  harmony  between  the  two  powers. 


,f.  -._. 


I. 


Documents  relating  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company. 

This  company  was  incorporated  by  a  charter  from  King  Charles  II. 
of  England,  issued  on  the  16th  of  May,  1669 ;  a  few  extracts  from  which 
will  be  sufficient  to  show  the  powers  of  the  company  and  the  extent  of  its 
territories  under  that  grant.  ,  .         ,,  ,    ,  ,^    , 

...:.. ...........  ...^  ...^  (I,)     .  .  .'  .^ ;....- 

His  Majesty's  Royal  Charter  to  the  Governor  and  Company  of  Hud' 

son's  Bay. 

"  Charles  the  Second,  by  the  grace  of  God,  king  of  England,  &,c.,  to 
all  to  whom  these  presents  shall  come.  Greeting :  Whereas  our  dearly 
beloved  cousin.  Prince  Rupert  [and  seventeen  others,  whose  names  and 
titles  follow]  have,  at  their  own  great  cost  and  charges,  undertaken  an  ex- 
pedition for  Hudson's  Bay,  in  the  north-west  parts  of  America,  for  the  dis- 
covery of  a  new  passage  into  the  South  Sea,  and  for  the  finding  of  some 
trade  for  furs,  minerals,  and  other  considerable  commodities ;  and  by  such 
their  undertaking  have  already  made  such  discoveries  as  do  encourage  them 
to  proceed  farther  in  performance  of  their  said  design,  by  means  whereof 
there  may  probably  arise  great  advantage  to  us  and  our  kingdoms;  and 
69 


ill      i;. 
lilil 


466 


PBOOrt    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


(L 


whereas  the  said  undertakers,  for  their  further  encouragement  in  the  said 
design,  have  humbly  besought  us  to  incorporate  them,  and  to  grant  unto 
them  and  their  successors  the  whole  trade  and  commerce  of  all  thuRo 
seas,  straits  and  bays,  rivers,  lakes,  creeks  and  sounds,  in  whatsoever  lati- 
tude they  shall  be,  that  lie  within  the  entrance  of  the  straits  commonly 
called  Hudson's  Straits,  together  with  all  the  lands,  countries,  and  terri> 
tories,  upon  the  coasts  and  confines  of  the  seas,  straits,  bays,  lakes,  rivers, 
creeks,  and  sounds,  aforesaid,  which  are  not  now  actually  possessed  by 
any  of  our  subjects,  or  by  the  subjects  of  any  other  Christian  prince 
or  state;—- 

"  Now,  know  ye,  that  we,  being  desirous  to  promote  all  endeavors  that 
may  tend  to  the  public  good  of  our  people,  and  to  encourage  the  said 
undertaking,  have,  of  our  especial  grace,  certain  knowledge,  and  mere 
motion,  given,  granted,  ratified,  and  confirmed,  and  by  these  presents,  for 
us  and  our  successors,  do  give,  grant,  ratify,  and  confirm,  unto  our  said 
cousin,  Prince  Rupert,  &c.,  that  they  and  such  others  as  shall  be  ad- 
mitted into  the  said  society,  as  is  hereafter  expressed,  shall  be  one  body 
corporate  and  politic,  in  deed  and  in  name,  by  the  name  of  The  Governor 
and  Company  of  Adventurers  of  England  trading  into  Hudson's  Bay, 
*  *  *  and  at  all  times  hereafter,  shall  be  personable,  and  capable  in 
law,  to  have,  purchase,  receive,  possess,  enjoy,  and  retain  lands,  rents, 
privileges,  liberties,  jurisdiction,  franchises,  and  hereditaments,  of  what 
kind,  nature,  or  quality  soever  they  be,  to  them  and  their  successors." 

By  succeeding  sections  of  the  charter,  provisions  are  made — for  the 
election  of  a  governor,  a  deputy  governor,  and  a  committee  of  seven 
members,  who  are  to  have  the  direction  of  all  voyages,  sales,  and  other 
business  of  the  company  —  for  the  election  of  new  members  —  and  for 
holding,  at  particular  periods,  a  general  court  of  the  company.  The 
first  company  and  their  successors  are  made  lords  proprietors  of  the 
territories  above  mentioned,  holding  the  lands  "  in  free  and  common 
socage,  and  not  incapite,  or  by  knights'  service;"  and  they  are  em- 
powered to  make  all  laws  and  regulations  for  the  government  of  their 
possessions,  which  may  "  be  reasonable,  and  not  contrary  or  repugnant, 
but  as  near  as  may  be  agreeable,  to  the  laws,  statutes,  and  customs,"  of 
England.  The  whole  trade,  fishery,  navigation,  minerals,  &c.,  of  the 
countries,  is  granted  to  the  company  exclusively ;  all  others  of  the  king's 
subjects  being  forbidden  to  "  visit,  haunt,  frequent,  trade,  traffic,  or 
adventure,"  therein,  under  heavy  penalties;  and  the  company  is  more- 
over empowered  "  to  send  ships,  and  to  build  fortifications,  for  the  de- 
fence of  its  possessions,  as  well  as  to  make  war  or  peace  with  all  nations 
or  people,  not  Christian,  inhabiting  those  territories,  which  are  declared 
to  be  thenceforth  "  reckoned  and  reputed  as  one  of  his  majesty's  plan- 
tations or  colonies,  in  America,  called  Rupert's  Land." 

Thus  it  will  be  seen,  that  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  possessed  by  its 
charter  almost  sovereign  powers  over  the  vast  portion  of  America  drained 
by  streams  entering  Hudson's  Bay.  With  regard  to  the  other  countries 
in  British  America,  north  and  west  of  Canada,  not  included  in  the  Hud- 
son's Bay  Company's  possessions,  and  which  were  termed,  generally,  the 
Indian  countries,  an  act  was  passed  on  the  11th  of  August,  1803,  in  the 
43d  year  of  the  reign  of  King  George  HI.,  entitled, 


PROOrS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


467 


(2.) 


IT")!' 


.  t 


"  An  Act  for  extending  the  Jurisdiction  of  the  Courts  of  Justice  in  the 
Provinces  of  Lmoer  and  Upper  Canada  to  the  Trial  and  Punishment 
of  Persons  guilty  of  Crimes  and  Offences  within  certain  Parts  of 
North  America,  a((joining  to  the  said  Provinces." 

By  this  act,  ofTences  committed  within  the  Indian  territories  were  to 
be  tried  in  the  same  manner  as  if  committed  within  the  provinces  of 
Lower  and  Upper  Canada ;  the  governor  of  Lower  Canada  may  em- 
power persons  to  act  as  justices  of  the  peace  for  the  Indian  territories, 
for  committing  offenders  until  they  are  conveyed  to  Canada  for  trial,  &,c. 
This  act  remained  in  force  until  July  2d,  1821   when  was  passed, 


(3.)  ,        . 

"  An  Act  for  regulating  the  Fur  TVade,  and  establishing  a  Criminal  and 
Civil  Jurisdiction,  within  certain  Parts  of  North  America.* 

"  Whereas  the  competition  in  the  fur  trade  between  the  Governor  and 
Company  of  Adventurers  of  England  trading  into  Hudson's  Bay,  and  cer- 
tain associations  of  persons  trading  under  the  name  of  '  The  North- West 
Company  of  Montreal,'  has  been  found,  for  some  years  past,  to  be  pro- 
ductive of  great  inconvenience  and  loss,  not  only  to  the  said  company  and 
associations,  but  to  the  said  trade  in  general,  and  also  of  great  injury  to 
the  native  Indians,  and  of  other  persons,  subjects  of  his  majesty :  And 
whereas  the  animosities  and  feuds  arising  from  such  competition  have 
also,  for  some  years  past,  kept  the  interior  of  America,  to  the  northward 
and  westward  of  the  provinces  of  Upper  and  Lower  Canada,  and  of  the 
territories  of  the  United  States  of  America,  in  a  state  of  continued  disturb- 
ance: And  whereas  many  breaches  of  the  peace,  and  violence,  extending 
to  the  loss  of  lives,  and  considerable  destruction  of  property  have  continu- 
ally occurred  therein :  And  whereas,  for  remedy  of  such  evils,  it  is  expe- 
dient and  necessary  that  some  more  effectual  regulations  should  be  estab- 
lished for  the  apprehending,  securing,  and  bringing  to  justice,  all  persons 
committing  such  offences,  and  that  his  majesty  should  be  empowered 
to  regulate  the  said  trade  :  And  whereas  doubts  have  been  entertained, 
whether  the  provisions  of  an  act  passed  in  the  forty-third  year  of  the  reign 
of  his  late  majesty,  King  George  the  Third,  intituled  'An  Act  for  extend- 
ing the  jurisdiction  of  the  courts  of  justice  in  the  provinces  oi  Lower  and 
Upper  Canada  to  the  trial  and  punishment  of  persons  guilty  of  crimes  and 
offences  within  certain  parts  of  North  America,  adjoining  to  the  said  prov- 
inces,' extended  to  the  territories  granted  by  charter  to  the  said  governor 
and  company  ;  and  it  is  expedient  that  such  doubts  should  be  removed, 
and  that  the  said  act  should  be  further  extended :  Be  it  therefore 
enacted,  by  the  king's  most  excellent  majesty,  by  and  with  the  advice  and 
consent  of  the  lords  spiritual  and  temporal,  and  commons,  in  this  present 
Parliament  assembled,  and  by  the  authority  of  the  same.  That,  from  and 

•  See  p.  325. 


k    I'i 


468 


PROOrS    ANU    ILLUSTHATI0N8. 


K- 


aHer  the  paiiRin|{  of  this  net,  it  ■hnll  bo  lawAil  for  hJH  majesty,  his  heirs  or 
succesKorti,  to  make  grants  or  (five  his  roynl  licciiHc,  under  tho  hnn«i  nnd 
•etil  of  one  of  his  majesty's  principal  sfcrclnrics  of  Htutn,  to  any  body  cor< 
porate  or  company,  or  person  or  persom*,  of  or  for  tiiu  cxclnsivo  privilege 
of  trading  with  the  Indians  in  all  »uch  parts  o( North  Ai'irriia  an  Hhuli  be 
specitied  in  any  such  grants  or  iiceuHCS  respectively,  not  being  part  >-(' 
the  huids  or  territories  heretofore  granted  to  the  siiid  (Jovernor  nnd  Com- 
pany of  Adventurers  of  tln^land  trading  to  Hudson's  tiny,  and  not  being 
part  of  ony  of  his  majesty's  provinces  in  North  America,  or  of  nnv  hinds 
or  territories  behniging  to  the  United  States  otAnirrirn;  anil  all  such 
grants  nnd  licenses  shall  be  good,  valid,  and  etfectual,  for  the  purpose  of 
securing  to  nil  such  bodies  corporate,  or  con)panics,  or  persons,  tlio  solo 
and  exclusive  privilege  of  trading  with  tho  Indians  in  all  such  parts  of 
North  Amrrira,  (except  as  hereinafter  excepted,)  ns  shall  be  specifuul  in 
such  grants  or  licenses,  nny  thing  contained  in  any  act  or  nets  of  Parlia- 
ment, or  nny  law,  to  the  contrary  notwithstnmling. 

"11.  Provided  nlwiiyi^,  and  bo  it  further  cnncted.  That  no  such  grant 
or  license,  made  or  given  by  his  majesty,  his  heirs  or  succcsHors,  of  any 
such  exclusive  privileges  of  trading  with  the  Indians  in  such  parts  of 
North  America  ns  aforesaid,  shall  be  made  or  given  for  any  longer  poriud 
than  twenty-ono  years ;  nnd  no  rent  shidl  be  required  or  demanded  for  or 
in  respect  of  any  such  grant  or  license,  or  nny  privileges  given  tl  creby 
under  the  provisions  of  this  net,  for  the  tirst  period  of  twenty-one  years  ; 
nnd  from  nnd  nfter  the  expiration  of  such  first  period  of  twenty-one  years, 
it  shall  be  lawful  for  his  majesty,  his  heirs  or  successors,  to  reserve  such 
rents  in  nny  future  grnnts  or  licenses  to  be  made  to  the  same  or  any  other 
parties,  as  shall  be  deemed  just  and  reasonable,  with  security  for  the  pay- 
ment thereof;  nnd  such  rents  shall  be  deemed  part  of  the  land  revenues 
of  his  majesty,  his  heirs  and  successors,  nnd  be  npplied  and  nccounted  for 
as  the  other  Innd  revenues  of  ii<:>  itiajesty,  his  hrlrs  or  successors,  shall, 
at  the  time  of  payment  of  any  sudi  rent  being  made,  be  applied  and  ac- 
counted for. 

"  III.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That,  from  anu  after  the  passing  of 
this  act,  the  Governor  and  Company  of  Adventurers  trading  to  Hudson's 
Bay,  and  every  body  corporate,  and  compnny,  nnd  person,  to  whom  every 
such  grant  or  license  shall  be  mndc  or  given,  as  aforesaid,  shall  respec- 
tively keep  accurate  registers  of  all  persons  in  their  employ  in  any  parts 
of  North  America,  and  shall,  once  in  each  year,  return  to  his  mojesty's  sec- 
retaries of  state  accurate  duplicates  of  such  registers,  and  shall  also  enter 
into  such  security  as  shall  be  required  by  his  majesty  for  the  due  execu- 
tion of  all  processes,  criminal  and  civil,  as  well  within  the  territories 
included  in  any  such  grant,  as  within  those  granted  by  hniter  to  the 
Governor  and  Company  of  Advent"' rors  trading  to  Hudson  s  f'<i.f,  nnd  for 
the  producing  or  delivering  into  safe  custody,  for  purp<  c  ol  (. »  ■  f  nil 
persons  in  their  employ  or  acting  under  their  authoi  .}  .viio  b;i.ill  be 
charged  with  any  criminal  offence,  nnd  also  for  the  due  and  faithful 
obstrvance  of  nil  such  rules,  regulations,  and  stipulations,  ns  shall  be  con- 
tained in  any  such  grant  or  license,  either  for  diminishing  or  preventing 
the  sfi'e  or  distribution  of  spirituous  liquors  to  the  Indians,  or  for  pro- 


motm^ 


•'..-.r 


moral  a>  d  religious  improvement,  or  for  any  other  object 


whicli  iiif  fK'ijest-  may  dejm  necessary  for  the  remedy  or  prevention  of 
the  oih<?i  ev ''^:   -.iiich  hav:;  nitherto  been  found  to  exist. 


u> 


1.1 


pnnnrB  ano  iM.irsTiiATioNs. 


469 


heira  or 
iniiil  mill 
Hxly  I'.or- 
privileno 
t  hIiiiIi  Ih' 
I  j)iirl  «•'.' 
kiui  Corn- 
not  hciiii; 
niiy  lantlH 

nil  niicli 
urposc  of 
,  tlio  Bolo 

parts  of 
iccit'uHl  ill 
ol"  Parliii- 

uch  grant 
irs,  of  any 
1  parts  of 
ger  period 
tied  for  or 
en  ll  treby 
one  years ; 
•one  years, 
serve  such 
r  any  otlier 
|Or  tlie  pay- 
revenuea 
oiinted  for 
isors,  shall, 
and  ac- 


inssing  of 
Jludson'n 
loin  every 
all  respec- 
nny  parts 
ijesty's  see- 
also  enter 
ue  execu- 
territories 
ter  to  the 
,/,  and  for 
■    i     ,f  nil 
„  b.'.ill  be 
nd  faithfnl 
lall  be  con- 
preventing 
)r  for  pro- 
.her  object 
ivention  of 


u 


"  IV.  And  whorend,  by  a  conventi(»ii  rutcrnd  into  between  bin  majesty 
'  I  the  United  States  of /l/H/'/v  a,  it  waa  i<ti(Mibili-(l  and  agreed  that  any 
country  on  the  north-west  const  of  {inrrien  to  llic  HC^Mvard  of  the  Sttmif 
^fountains,  shouhi  ho  fron  nnd  ojioii  to  th^>  nitisenH  -I  MnbjtM'.ts  of  the 
two  powern,  for  the  term  often  vonrs  frdin  n  date  n'  the  signatnre  of 
that  convention;  Do  it  therefore  ciiucted,  Thiu  nothin).>  '>  this  act  con- 
tained shall  be  deemed  or  constrned  to  aiithori/.c  any  hodv  '  orporate, 
company,  or  person,  to  whom  his  maj(!sty  may  have,  under  the  ,>roviti(tnfl 
of  this  act,  made  a  grant  or  >»iven  a  license  of  excli  -ive  tradi  with  tho 
Indians  in  such  parts  of  North  Amrrirn  as  aforesaid,  i.  oJ  i;!!  or  xerciso 
niiy  such  exclusive  trade  within  the  limits  specified  in  t)  "  said  nrnelo,  to 
ih'  pr<  I'idico  or  exclusion  of  any  citizens  of  tho  said  i  ited  States  of 
/i'Hirif.,1  who  may  be  eiiajm^'ed  in  the  said  trade  :  I'rovin  «l  always,  that 
U(i  li-'ii  ,i  subject  shall  tra<lc  with  the  JndinriH  within  hucIi  limits  without 
huch  grunt  or  liccnso  ns  is  l)y  this  act  re(|nir(;(l. 

"  V.  And  be  it  declared  and  enacted,  That  the  said  act,  pass  1  in  Uio 
li'rty-third  year  of  tho  reign  of  his  late  majesty,  intituled  An  /I.  for  rz. 
tending  thejuriMlirtion  of  thr.  courts  of  justice  in  the  provinces  of  f'Ovrer 
a/If/ Upper  Canada,  to  the  trial  and  punishment  of  persons  puiltif  of  i  imes 
tind  offences  within  certain  parts  o/' North  America  adjoining  to  t/n  'aid 
provinces,  nnd  all  the  clauses  and  provisoes  therein  contained,  sli  <  be 
deemed  and  constrned,  and  it  is  and  arc  berehy  respectively  derlart  to 
extend  to  nnd  over,  nnd  to  he  in  full  force  in  and  through,  nil  tlu-  tern'o- 
ries  heretofore  granted  to  the  Company  of  Adventurers  n{ Knglann  'radu  % 
to  Hudson's  llaij;  any  thing  in  any  act  or  acts  of  Parliament,  or  tnis  ai:  , 
or  in  any  grant  or  charter  to  the  company,  to  the  contrary  notwithstanding' 

'*  VI.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That,  from  and  after  the  passing  ol 
this  act,  the  courts  of  judicature  now  existing,  or  which  may  be  hcrfafter 
established  in  tho  province  of  Upiirr  Canada,  shall  have  the  same  civil 
jurisdiction,  power,  and  authority,  as  well  in  the  cognizance  of  suits  as  in 
the  issuing  process,  mesne  and  final,  and  in  all  other  respects  whatsoever, 
within  the  said  Indian  territories,  and  other  parts  of  America  not  within 
the  limits  of  either  of  the  provinces  of  Lower  or  Upper  Canada,  or  of  unij 
civil  government  of  the  United  States,  ns  tho  said  courts  have  or  are 
invested  with  within  the  limits  of  the  said  provinces  of  Lower  or  Uppir 
Canada  respectively ;  nnd  that  all  and  every  contract,  ngrecment,  debt, 
liability,  and  demand  whatsoever,  made,  entered  info,  incurred,  or  arising 
within  the  said  Indian  territories  nnd  other  parts  of  Amvrica,  and  all  ami 
every  wrong  and  injury  to  the  person,  or  to  property,  real  or  personal,  com- 
mitted or  done  within  the  same,  shall  be,  nnd  he  deemed  to  he,  of  the  same 
nature,  and  be  cognizable  by  the  same  courts,  magistrates,  or  justices  of  the 
pi'icc,  find  be  tried  in  the  same  manner,  and  subject  to  the  same  conse- 
quences, in  all  respects,  as  if  the  same  liad  been  made,  entered  into,  incurred, 
arisen,  committed,  or  done,  within  the  said  province  of  Upper  Canada ;  any 
thing  in  any  act  or  acts  of  Parliament,  <»r  grant,  or  charter,  to  the  contrary 
notwithstanding;  Provided  always,  thiit  all  such  suits  and  actions  relatiii.fr 
to  lands,  or  to  any  claims  in  respect  of  land,  not  being  within  the  province 
of  Upper  Caniidn,  'hall  be  decided  according  to  the  laws  of  that  part  of 
the  United  Kingdom  called  England,  and  shall  not  be  subject  to  or  aflectcd 
by  any  local  acts,  stuiutes,  or  laws,  of  the  legislature  of  Upper  Canada. 

"  VII.  And  be  it  further  onacted,  That  all  process,  writs,  orders,  judg- 
ments, decrcf'v  nnd  icts  what«i»ever,  tr>  be  issued,  made,  delivered,  given, 
and  done,  bv  or  under  the  aulhoritv  oT  the  snid  courts,  or  either  of  them, 


470 


FBOUFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


1% 


'■| 


shall  have  tne  same  force,  authority,  and  effect,  within  the  said  Indian 
territory  and  other  parts  of  Ainerica  as  aforesaid,  as  the  same  now  have 
within  the  said  province  of  Upper  Canada. 

"  VIII.  And  be  it  further  enacted.  That  it  shall  be  lawful  for  the  gov- 
ernor, or  lieutenant-governor,  or  person  administering  the  government 
for  the  time  being,  of  Lower  Canada,  by  commission  under  his  hand  and 
seal,  to  authorize  all  persons  who  shall  be  appointed  justices  of  the  peace 
under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  within  the  said  Indian  territories,  or  other 
parts  of  America  as  aforesaid,  or  any  other  person  who  shall  be  specially 
named  in  any  such  commission,  to  act  as  a  commissioner  within  the  same, 
for  the  p-  ose  of  executing,  enforcing,  and  carrying  into  effect,  all  such 
process,  wi  s,  orders,  judgments,  decrees,  and  acts,  which  shall  be  issued, 
made,  delivered,  given,  or  done,  by  the  said  courts  of  judicature,  and  which 
may  require  to  be  enforced  and  executed  within  tiie  said  Indian  territo- 
ries, or  such  other  parts  of  North  America  as  aforesaid;  and  in  case  any 
person  or  persons  whatsoever,  residing  or  being  within  the  said  Indian 
territories,  or  such  other  parts  of  America  as  aforesaid,  shall  refuse  to 
obey  or  perform  any  such  process,  writ,  order,  judgment,  decree,  or  act, 
of  the  said  courts,  or  shall  resist  or  oppose  the  execution  thereof,  it  shall 
and  may  be  lawful  for  the  said  justices  of  the  peace  or  commissioners, 
and  they,  or  any  of  them,  are,  and  is,  hereby  required,  on  the  same  being 
proved  before  him,  by  the  oath  or  affidavit  of  one  credible  witness,  to 
commit  the  said  person  or  persons  so  offending  as  aforesaid  to  custody, 
in  order  to  his  or  their  being  conveyed  to  Upper  Canada ;  and  that  it 
shall  be  lawful  for  any  such  justice  of  the  peace  or  commissioner,  or  any 
person  or  persons  acting  under  his  authority,  to  convey,  or  cause  to  be 
conveyed,  such  person  or  persons  so  offending  as  aforesaid  to  Upper  Can- 
ada, in  pursuance  of  such  process,  writ,  order,  decree,  judgment,  or  act ; 
and  such  person  and  persons  shall  be  committed  to  jail  by  the  said  court, 
on  his,  her,  or  their  being  so  brought  into  the  said  province  of  Upper 
Canada,  by  which  such  process,  writ,  order,  decree,  judgment,  or  act,  was 
issued,  made,  delivered,  given,  or  done,  until  a  final  judgment  or  decree 
shall  have  been  pronounced  in  such  suit,  and  shall  have  been  duly  per- 
formed, and  all  costs  paid,  in  case  such  person  or  persons  shall  be  a  party 
or  parties  in  such  suit,  or  until  the  trial  of  such  suit  shall  have  been  con- 
cluded, in  case  such  person  or  persons  shall  be  a  witness  or  witnesses 
therein :  Provided  always,  that,  if  any  person  or  persons,  so  apprehended  as 
aforesaid,  shall  enter  into  a  bond  recognizance  to  any  such  justice  of  the 
peace  or  commissioner,  with  two  sufficient  sureties,  to  the  satisfaction  of 
such  justice  of  the  peace  or  commissioner,  or  the  said  courts,  conditioned 
to  obey  and  perform  such  process,  writ,  order,  judgment,  decree,  or  act,  as 
aforesaid,  then  and  in  such  case  it  shall  and  may  be  lawful  for  the  said 
justice  of  the  peace  or  commissioner,  or  the  said  courts,  to  discharge 
such  person  or  persons  out  of  custody, 

"  IX.  And  be  it  fnither  enacted,  That,  in  case  such  person  or  persons 
shall  not  perform  and  fulfil  the  condition  or  conditions  of  such  recogni- 
zance, then  and  in  such  case  it  shall  and  may  be  lawful  for  any  such 
justice  or  commissioner,  and  he  is  hereby  required,  to  assign  such  recog- 
nizance to  the  plaintiff  or  plaintiffs,  in  any  suit  in  which  such  process, 
writ,  order,  decree,  judgment,  or  act,  shall  have  been  issued,  made,  deliv- 
ered, given,  or  done,  who  may  maintain  an  action  in  the  said  courts  in  his 
own  name  against  the  said  sureties,  and  recover  against  such  sureties  the 
full  amount  of  such  loss  or  damage  as  such  plaintiff  shnll  prove  to  have 


» 


L] 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


471 


Indian 
ow  have 

the  gov- 

rernment 

land  and 

he  peace 

,  or  other 

specially 

the  same, 

,,  all  such 

)e  issued, 

ind  which 

in  territo- 
case  any 

id  Indian 

refuse  to 

ee,  or  act, 

jf,  it  shall 

nissioners, 

ame  being 

witness,  to 

o  custody, 

and  that  it 

ler,  or  any 

ause  to  be 

Upper  Can' 

int,  or  act ; 

said  court, 
of  Uj)per 
or  act,  was 
or  decree 
n  duly  per- 
be  a  party 
been  con- 
witnesses 
ehended  as 
itice  of  the 
sfaction  of 
londitioned 
!,  or  act,  as 
[or  the  said 
discharge 

I  or  persons 
Ih  recogni- 
|r  any  such 
Juch  recog- 
ch  process, 
Lade,  deliy- 
Jpurts  in  his 
lureties  the 
T»ve  to  have 


been  sustained  by  him,  by  reason  of  the  original  cause  of  action  in  respect 
of  which  such  process,  writ,  order,  decree,  judgment,  or  act,  of  the  said 
courts  were  issued,  made,  delivered,  given,  or  done,  as  aforesaid,  notwith- 
standing any  thing  contained  in  any  charter  granted  to  the  said  Governor 
and  Company  of  Adventurers  of  England  trading  to  Hudson's  Bay. 

"  X.  And  be  it  further  enacted.  That  it  shall  be  lawful  for  his  majesty, 
if  he  shall  deem  it  convenient  so  to  do,  to  issue  a  commission  or  com- 
missions to  any  person  or  persons  to  be  and  act  as  justices  of  the  peace 
within  such  parts  oi  America  as  aforesaid,  as  well  within  any  territories 
heretofore  granted  to  the  Company  of  Adventurers  of  England  trading  to 
Hudson's  Bay,  as  within  the  Indian  territories  of  such  other  parts  of 
America  as  aforesaid ;  and  it  shall  be  lawful  for  the  court  in  the  province 
of  Upper  Canada,  in  any  case  in  which  it  shall  appear  expedient  to  have 
any  evidence  taken  by  commission,  or  any  facts  or  issue,  or  any  cause  or 
suit,  ascertained,  to  issue  a  commission  to  any  three  or  more  of  such  jus- 
tices to  take  such  evidence,  and  return  th**  same,  or  try  such  issue,  and 
for  that  purpose  to  hold  courts,  and  to  issue  subpoenas  or  other  processes 
to  compel  attendance  of  plaintiffs,  defendants,  jurors,  witnesses,  and  all 
other  persons  requisite  and  essential  to  the  execution  of  the  several  pur- 
poses for  which  such  commission  or  commissions  had  issued,  and  with 
the  like  power  and  authority  as  are  vested  in  the  courts  of  the  said 
province  of  Upper  Canada ;  and  any  order,  verdict,  judgment,  or  decree, 
that  shall  be  made,  found,  declared,  or  published,  by  or  before  any  court 
or  courts  held  under  and  by  virtue  of  such  cjmmission  or  commissions, 
shall  be  considered  to  be  of  as  full  effect,  and  enforced  in  like  manner,  as 
if  the  same  had  been  made,  found,  declared,  or  published,  within  the  juris- 
diction of  the  court  of  the  said  province ;  and  at  the  time  of  issuing  such 
commission  or  commissions  shall  be  declared  the  place  or  places  where 
such  commission  is  to  be  opened,  and  the  courts  and  proceedings  there- 
under held  ;  and  it  shall  be  at  the  same  time  provided  how  and  by  what 
means  the  expenses  of  such  commission,  and  the  execution  thereof,  shall 
be  raised  and  provided  for. 

"  XI.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  Thai  it  shall  be  lawful  for  his  majesty, 
notwithstanding  any  thing  contained  in  this  act,  or  in  any  charter  granted 
to  the  said  Governor  and  Company  of  Adventurers  of  England  trading  to 
Hudson's  Bay,  from  time  to  time,  by  any  commission  under  the  great 
seal,  to  authorize  and  empower  any  such  persons  so  appointed  justices  of 
the  peace  as  aforesaid,  to  sit  and  hold  courts  of  record  for  the  trial  of 
criminal  offences  and  misdemeanors,  and  also  of  civil  causes ;  and  it  shall 
be  lawful  for  his  majesty  to  order,  direct,  and  authorize,  the  appointment 
of  proper  officers  to  act  in  aid  of  such  courts  and  justices  within  the  juris- 
diction assigned  to  such  courts  and  justices,  in  any  such  commission ; 
any  thing  in  this  act,  or  in  any  charter  of  the  Governor  and  Company  of 
Merchant  Adventurers  of  England  trading  to  Hudson's  Bay,  to  the  con- 
trary notwithstanding. 

"  XII.  Provided  always,  and  be  it  further  enacted.  That  such  courts 
pHall  be  constituted,  as  to  the  number  of  justices  to  preside  therein,  and 
us  to  such  places  within  the  said  territories  of  the  said  company,  or  any 
Indian  territories,  or  other  parts  of  North  America  as  aforesaid,  and  the 
times  and  manner  of  holding  the  same,  as  his  majesty  shall  from  time  to 
time  order  and  direct ;  but  shall  not  try  any  offender  upon  any  charge 
or  indictment  for  any  felony  made  the  subject  of  capital  punishment,  or 


m 


472 


PBOOrS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[L 


for  any  offence,  or  passing  sentence  affecting  the  life  of  any  offender,  or 
adjudge  or  cause  any  offender  to  suffer  capital  punishment  or  transporta- 
tion, or  take  cognizance  of  or  try  any  civil  action  or  suit,  in  which  the 
cause  of  such  suit  or  action  shall  exceed  in  value  the  amount  or  sum  of 
two  hundred  pounds ;  and  in  every  case  of  any  offence  subjecting  the  per- 
son committing  the  same  to  capital  punishment  or  transportation,  the 
court  or  any  judge  of  any  such  court,  or  any  justice  or  justices  of  the 
peace,  before  whom  any  such  offender  shall  be  broy^ght,  shall  commit  such 
offender  to  safe  custody,  and  cause  such  offender  to  be  sent  in  such  custody 
for  trial  in  the  court  of  the  province  of  Upper  Canada. 

"  XIII.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  all  judgments  given  in  any 
civil  suit  shall  be  subject  to  appeal  to  his  majesty  in  council,  in  like 
manner  as  in  other  cases  in  bis  majesty's  province  of  Upper  Canada^  and 
also  in  any  case  in  which  the  right  or  title  to  any  land  shall  be  in 
question. 

"  XIV.  And  be  it  further  enacted.  That  nothing  in  this  act  contained 
shall  be  taken  or  construed  to  affect  any  right,  privilege,  authority,  or 
jurisdiction,  which  the  Governor  and  Company  of  Adventurers  trading  to 
Hudson's  Bay  are  by  law  entitled  to  claim  and  exercise  under  their 
charter  ;  but  that  all  such  rights,  privileges,  authorities,  and  jurisdictions, 
shall  remain  in  as  full  force,  virtue,  and  effect,  as  if  this  act  had  never 
been  made ;   any  thing  in  this  act  to  the  contrary  notwithstanding." 


Shortly  before  the  passage  of  this  act,  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  was 
united  with  the  North- West  Company,  or  rather  the  latter  was  merged  in 
the  former;  and  on  the  21st  of  December,  1821,  the  king  made  a 


(4.) 


I-      : 


"  Grant  of  the  exclusive  Trade  with  the  Indians  of  North  America  to 
the  Hudson's  Bay  Company," 

of  which  the  following  are  the  terms :  — 

<*  And  whereas  the  said  Company  of  Adventurers  of  England,  trading 
into  Hudson's  Bay,  and  certain  associations  of  persons  trading  under  the 
name  of  the  North-West  Company  of  Montreal,  have  respectively  extended 
the  fur  trade  over  many  parts  of  North  America,  which  had  not  been 
before  explored :  And  whereas  the  competition  in  the  said  trade  has 
been  found,  for  some  years  past,  to  be  productive  of  great  inconvenience 
and  loss,  not  only  to  the  said  company  and  associations,  but  to  the  said 
trade  in  general,  and  also  of  great  injury  to  the  native  Indians,  and  of 
other  persons  our  subjects :  And  whereas  the  said  Governor  and  Company 
of  Adventurers  of  England,  trading  into  Hudson's  Bay,  and  William  Mc- 
Gillivray,  of  Montreal,  in  the  province  of  Lower  Canada,  Esquire,  Simon 
McGillivray,  of  Suffolk  Lane,  in  the  city  of  London,  merchant,  and  Edward 
Ellice,  of  Spring  Gardens,  in  the  county  of  Middlesex,  Esquire,  have 
represented  to  us,  that  they  have  entered  into  an  agreement  on  the  26th 
day  of  March  last,  for  putting  an  end  to  the  said  competition,  and  carry- 


I] 


PROOFS    AND   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


473 


America  to 


ing  on  the  said  trade  for  twenty-one  years,  commencing  with  the  outfit  of 
1821,  and  ending  with  the  returns  of  1841,  to  be  carried  on  in  the  name 
of  the  said  Governor  and  Company  exclusively :  And  where^  the  said 
Governor  and  Company,  and  W.  McGillivray,  S.  McGillivray,  and  E. 
Ellice,  have  humbly  besought  us  to  make  a  grant,  and  give  our  royal 
license  to  them  jointly,  of  and  for  the  exclusive  privilege  of  trading  with 
the  Indians  in  North  America,  under  the  restrictions  and  upon  the  terms 
and  conditions  specified  in  the  said  recited  act :  — 

"  Now,  know  yCf  that  we,  being  desirous  of  encouraging  the  said  trade, 
and  remedying  the  evils  which  have  arisen  from. the  competition  which 
has  heretofore  existed  therein,  do  grant  and  give  our  royal  license,  under 
the  hand  and  seal  of  one  of  our  principal  secretaries  of  state,  to  the  said 
Governor  and  Company,  and  W.  McGillivray,  S.  McGillivray,  and  E.  El- 
lice, for  the  exclusive  privilege  of  trading  with  the  Indians,  in  all  such 
parts  of  North  America,  to  the  northward  and  westward  of  the  lands  and 
territories  belonging  to  the  United  States  of  America,  as  shall  not  form 
part  of  any  of  our  provinces  in  North  America,  or  of  any  lands  or  terri- 
tories belonging  to  the  said  United  States  of  America,  or  to  any  European 
government,  state,  or  power;  and  we  do  by  these  presents  give,  grant, 
and  secure,  to  the  said  Governor  and  Company,  and  W.  McGillivray,  S. 
McGillivray,  and  E.  Ellice,  jointly,  the  sole  and  exclusive  privilege,  for 
the  full  period  of  twenty-one  years  from  the  date  of  this  our  grant,  of 
trading  with  the  Indians  in  all  such  parts  of  North  America  as  aforesaid, 
(except  as  thereinafter  excepted :)  And  we  do  hereby  declare  that  no  rent 
shall  be  required  or  demanded  for  or  in  respect  of  this  our  grant  and 
license,  or  any  privileges  given  thereby,  for  the  said  period  of  twenty-one 
years,  but  that  the  said  Governor  and  Company,  and  W.  McGillivray,  S. 
McGillivray,  and  E.  Ellice,  shall,  during  the  period  of  this  our  grant  and 
license,  keep  accurate  registers  of  all  persons  in  their  employ,  in  any  parts 
of  North  America,  and  shall  once  in  each  year  return  tu  our  secretary 
of  state  accurate  duplicates  of  all  such  registers,  and  shall  also  enter  into 
and  give  security  to  us,  our  heirs  and  successors,  in  the  penal  sum  of  five 
thousand  pounds,  for  insuring,  as  far  as  in  them  may  lie,  the  due  execu- 
tion of  all  the  criminal  processes,  and  of  any  civil  process,  in  any  suit, 
where  the  matter  in  dispute  shall  exceed  two  hundred  pounds,  by  the 
officers  and  persons  legally  empowered  to  execute  such  processes,  within 
all  the  territories  included  in  this  our  grant,  and  for  the  producing  and 
delivering  into  safe  custody,  for  purposes  of  trial,  any  persons  in  their 
employ  or  acting  under  their  authority,  within  the  said  territories,  who 
may  he  charged  with  any  criminal  offence. 

"  And  we  do  hereby  require  that  the  said  Governor  and  Company,  and 
W.  McGillivray,  S.  McGillivray,  and  E.  Ellice,  shall,  as  soon  as  the  same 
can  be  conveniently  done,  make  and  submit,  for  our  consideration  and 
approval,  such  rules  and  regulations  for  the  management  and  carrying  on 
the  said  fur  trade  with  the  Indians,  and  the  conduct  of  the  persons 
employed  by  them  therein,  as  may  appear  to  us  to  be  effectual,  for  gradu- 
ally diminishing  or  ultimately  preventing  the  sale  and  distribution  of 
spirituous  liquors  to  the  Indians,  and  for  promoting  their  moral  and 
religious  improvement.  —  And  we  do  hereby  declare  that  nothing  in 
this  our  grant  contained  shall  be  deemed  or  construed  to  authorize  the 
said  Governor  and  Company,  or  W.  McGillivray,  S.  McGillivray,  and  E. 
Ellice,  or  any  person  in  their  employ,  to  claim  or  exercise  any  trade  with 
60 


474 


PROOrS    AND   ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[I. 


the  Indians  on  the  north-west  const  or  Americn,  to  the  westward  of  tlio 
Stony  Mountains,  to  the  prejudice  or  exclusion  of  any  citizen  of  tlio 
United  States  of  America,  who  may  be  engaged  in  the  said  trade :  Pro- 
Tided  always,  that  no  British  subjocts  other  than  and  except  the  said 
Governor  and  Company,  and  the  said  W.  McQiilivruy,  S.  McQiilivray,  and 
E.  Eilice,  and  the  iHirsona  authorized  to  carry  on  oxclunivo  trade  by  them 
on  grant,  shall  trade  with  the  Indians  within  mch  limits,  during  the 
period  of  this  our  grant." 

Under  this  license,  tlio  parties  to  whom  it  was  granted  continued  their 
operations  until  1824,  when  the  claims  of  the  North- West  Company  were 
extinguished  by  mutud  consent ;  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  then  became 
the  sole  possessor  of  the  privileges  conceded,  which  were  enjoyed  by  that 
body  until  the  expiration  of  the  grant.  Previous  to  that  period,  1838, 
a  new  grant  was  made  to  the  company,  entitled, 


(6.) 


!  > 


"  CVowti  Orant  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  of  the  exclusive^  Trade 
with  the  Indians  in  certain  Parts  of  North  America,   '' 
twenty-one  Years,  and  upon  Surrenacr  of  a  former  Orau. 


^r  a  Term  of 
which,  after  recapitulating  the  terms  of  the  first  grant,  continues  thus : 


"  And  whereas  the  said  Governor  and  Company  have  acquired  to 
themselves  all  the  rights  and  interests  of  the  said  W.  McGillivray,  8. 
McGillivray,  and  E.  Eilice,  under  the  said  recited  grant,  and  the  said 
Governor  and  Company  have  humbly  besought  us  tb  accept  a  surrender 
of  the  said  grant,  and  in  consideration  thereof  to  make  a  grant  to  them, 
and  give  to  them  our  royal  license  and  authority  of  and  for  the  like 
exclusive  privilege  of  trading  with  the  Indians  in  North  America,  for  the 
like  period,  and  upon  similar  terms  and  conditions  to  those  specified  and 
referred  to  in  the  said  recited  grant :  Now,  know  ye,  that,  in  consideration 
of  the  surrender  made  to  us  of  the  said  recited  grant,  and  being  desirous 
of  encouraging  the  said  trade,  and  of  preventing  as  much  as  possible  a 
recurrence  of  the  evils  mentioned  or  referred  to  in  the  said  recited  grant, 
as  also  in  consideration  of  the  yearly  rent  hereinafter  reserved  to  us,  we 
do  hereby  grant  and  give  our  license,  under  the  hand  and  seal  of  one  of 
our  principal  secretaries  of  state,  to  the  said  Governor  and  Company,  and 
their  successors,  for  the  exclusive  privilege  of  trading  vAth  the  Indians  in 
all  such  parts  of  North  America,  to  the  northward  and  to  the  westward 
of  the  lands  and  territories  belonging  to  the  United  States  of  America,  as 
shall  not  form  part  of  any  of  our  provinces  in  North  America,  or  of  any 
lands  or  territories  belonging  to  the  said  United  States  of  America,  or  to 
any  European  government,  state,  or  power,  but  subject,  nevertheless,  as 
hereinafter  mentioned :  And  we  do,  by  these  presents,  give,  grant,  and 
secure,  to  the  said  Governor  and  Company,  and  their  successors,  the  sole 
and  exclusive  privilege,  for  the  full  period  of  twenty-one  years  from  the 
date  of  this  our  grant,  of  trading  with  the  Indians  in  nil  such  parts  of 
North  America  as  aforesaid,  (except  as  hereinafter  i.  :-ntioned : )  And  we 


1.J 


PROOrfl    ANU    IliLUaTHATIONS. 


475 


(](>  hereby  doolare  thnt  no  rent  shall  bo  required  or  domnndod  for  or  in 
renpoot  of  thin  our  urant  and  licontie,  or  any  privilogoa  given  thereby  for 
the  first  four  years  ot  the  said  tornt  of  twenty-one  years ;  and  we  do  hereby 
renorve  to  oursolvcn,  our  heirs  nnd  nucccHHorn,  mr  the  remainder  of  the 
said  torin  of  twenty-one  years,  the  yearly  rent  or  sum  of  five  shillings,  to  be 


paid  b)j  tiie  siiid  (Jovornor  and  Compiniy,  or  their  successors,  on  the  lit 
dny  of  June,  in  cvury  your,  into  our  cxciiuqucr,  on  the  account  of  us,  our 
heirs  nnd  successors :  And  wo  do  lioroby  declare  that  the  said  Governor 
and  Company,  and  their  BucccsNors,  shall,  during  the  period  of  this  our 
grant  and  license,  koop  accurate  registorM  of  all  persons  in  their  employ 
in  any  parts  of  North  America,  and  nhall,  onco  in  each  ycnr,  return  to 
our  secretary  of  state  accurate  duplicatc^M  of  such  registers;  and  shall  also 
fntor  into  nnd  give  security  to  us,  our  iieira  and  aucceasors,  in  the  penal 
anm  of  five  thousand  pounds,  for  insuring,  as  far  as  in  them  may  lie,  or  as 
they  can  by  their  authority  over  the  survanta  and  persona  in  their  employ, 
the  duo  execution  of  all  criminal  and  civil  proceaaes  by  the  officera  and 
persona  legally  empowered  to  execute  auch  processes  within  all  the  terri- 
tories included  in  thia  our  grant,  and  for  the  producing  or  delivering  into 
cuatody,  for  the  purpoaea  of  trial,  all  persons  in  their  employ  or  acting 
under  their  authority,  within  the  said  territories,  who  shall  be  charged  with 
any  criminal  otfenco :  And  wo  do  also  hereby  require  thnt  the  said  Gov- 
ernor and  Company,  and  their  successors,  shall,  as  soon  as  the  same  can 
conveniently  be  done,  make  and  submit  for  our  consideration  and  approval, 
such  rules  and  regulations  for  the  mnnngcmcnt  and  carrying  on  the  said 
fur  trade  with  the  Indians,  and  the  conduct  of  the  persons  employed  by 
them  therein,  as  may  appear  to  us  to  be  elFjctual  for  diminishing  or  pre- 
venting the  sale  or  distribution  of  spirituous  liquora  to  the  Indiana,  and 
for  promoting  their  moral  and  rcligioua  improvement :  But  we  do  hereby 
declare  that  nothing  in  this  our  grant  contained  shall  be  deemed  or  con- 
strued to  authorize  the  said  Governor  »nd  Company,  or  their  successors, 
or  any  persons  in  their  employ,  to  claim  or  exercise  any  trade  with  the 
Indians  on  the  north-west  coast-  of  America,  to  the  westward  of  the 
Stony  Mountains,  to  the  prejudice  or  exclusion  of  any  of  the  subjects  of 
any  foreign  states,  who,  under  or  by  force  of  any  convention  ibr  tne  time 
being,  between  ua  and  such  foreign  states  respectively,  may  be  entitled  to, 
and  shall  be  engaged  in,  the  said  trade :  Provided,  nevertheless,  and  we 
do  hereby  declare  our  pleasure  to  be,  that  nothing  herein  contained  shall 
extend  or  be  construed  to  prevent  the  establishment  by  us,  our  heirs,  or 
successors,  within  the  territories  aforesaid,  or  any  of  them,  of  any  colony 
or  colonies,  province  or  provinces,  or  for  .annexing  any  part  of  the  afore- 
said territories  to  any  existing  colony  or  colonies  to  us  in  right  of  our 
imperial  crown  belonging,  or  for  constituting   any  such  form  of  civil 
government,  ns  to  us  may  seem  meet,  within  any  such  colony  or  col- 
onies, or  provinces: 

"  And  we  do  hereby  reserve  to  us,  our  heirs  and  successors,  full  power 
and  authority  to  revoke  these  presents,  or  any  part  thereof,  in  so  far  as 
the  same  may  embrace  or  extend  to  any  of  the  territories  aforesaid,  which 
may  hereafter  be  comprised  within  any  colony  or  colonies,  province  or 
provinces,  as  aforesaid: 

"  It  being,  nevertheless,  hereby  declared  that  no  British  subjects,  other 
than  and  except  the  said  Governor  and  Company,  and  their  successors, 
and  the  persons  authorized  to  carry  on  exclusive  trade  by  them,  shall 


!i! 


i. 


476 


PROOFS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[fc 


trade  with  the  Indians  daring  the  period  of  this  oar  grant,  within  the 
limits  aforesaid,  or  within  that  part  thereof  which  shall  not  be  com- 
prised within  any  such  colony  or  province  as  aforesaid." 


K. 


TreATIKS    and     CdNVENTIONS     RELATIVK     TO     THE    NoRTH-WeST 

Territories   or   North   America.  ^ 


t 


Convention  bettozm   Great  Britain  and  Spain,  (eommonfy  called   the 
NooTKA  Treaty,)  signed  at  the  Escurial,  October  28M,  1790. 

Article  1.  The  buildings  and  tracts  of  land  situated  on  the  north- 
west coast  of  the  continent  of  North  America,  or  on  the  islands  adjacent 
to  that  continent,  of  which  the  subjects  of  his  Britannic  majesty  were  dis- 
possessed about  the  month  of  April,  1789,  by  a  Spanish  officer,  shall  be 
restored  to  the  said  British  subjects. 

Art.  2.  A  just  reparation  shall  be  made,  according  to  the  nature  of 
the  case,  for  all  acts  of  violence  or  hostility  which  may  have  been  com- 
mitted subsequent  to  the  month  of  April,  1789,  by  the  subjects  of  either 
of  the  contracting  parties  against  the  subjects  of  the  other ;  and,  in  case 
any  of  the  said  respective  subjects  shall,  since  the  same  period,  have  been 
forcibly  dispossessed  of  their  lands,  buildings,  vessels,  merchandise,  and 
other  property,  whatever,  on  the  said  continent,  or  on  the  seas  and  islands 
adjacent,  they  shall  be  reestablished  in  the  possession  thereof,  or  a  just  com- 
pensation shall  be  made  to  them  for  the  losses  which  they  have  sustained. 

Art.  3.  In  order  to  strengthen  the  bonds  of  friendship,  and  to  pre- 
serve in  future  a  perfect  harmony  and  good  understanding,  between  the 
two  contracting  parties,  it  is  agreed  that  their  respective  subjects  shall  not 
be  disturbed  or  molested,  either  in  navigating,  or  carrying  on  their  fish- 
eries, in  the  Pacific  Ocean  or  in  the  South  Seas,  or  'n  landing  on  the 
coasts  of  those  seas  in  places  not  already  occupied,  for  the  purpose  of 
carrying  on  their  commerce  with  the  natives  of  the  country,  or  of  making 
settlements  there ;  the  whole  subject,  nevertheless,  to  the  restrictions 
specified  in  the  three  following  articles. 

Art.  4.  His  Britannic  majesty  engages  to  take  the  most  effectual 
measures  to  prevent  the  navigation  and  the  fishery  of  his  subjects  in  the 
Pacific  Ocean  or  in  the  South  Seas  firom  being  made  a  pretext  for  illicit 
trade  with  the  Spanish  settlements;  and,  with  this  view,  it  is  moreover 
expressly  stipulated  that  British  subjects  shall  not  navigate,  or  carry  on 
their  fishery,  in  the  said  seas,  within  the  space  of  ten  sea  leagues  from 
any  part  of  the  coasts  already  occupied  by  Spain. 

Art.  5.  As  well  in  the  places  which  are  to  be  restored  to  the  British 
subjects,  by  virtue  of  the  first  article,  as  in  all  other  parts  of  the  north- 


K.] 


PROOIB    AND   ILLURTRATIONB. 


477 


western  coasts  of  North  America,  or  of  the  islands  adjacent,  situate  to  the 
north  of  the  parts  of  the  said  coast  already  occupied  by  Spain,  wherever 
the  bubjects  of  either  of  the  two  powers  shall  have  made  settlements  sii^ce 
the  month  of  April,  1789,  or  shtul  hereafter  make  any,  the  subjects  of  the 
other  shall  have  free  access,  and  shall  carry  on  their  trade  without  any 
disturbance  or  molestation. 

Art.  6.  With  respect  to  the  eastern  and  western  coasts  of  South 
America,  and  to  the  islands  adjacent,  no  settlement  shall  be  formed  here- 
after by  (he  respective  subjects  in  such  part  of  thone  coasts  as  are  situated 
to  the  south  of  those  parts  of  the  same  coasts,  and  of  the  islands  adjacent, 
which  are  already  occupied  by  Spain :  provided,  that  the  said  respective 
subjects  shall  retain  the  liberty  of  landing  on  the  coasts  and  islands  so 
situated  for  the  purpose  of  their  fishery,  and  of  erecting  thereon  huts  and 
other  temporary  buildings  serving  only  for  those  purposes. 

Art.  7.  In  all  cases  of  complaint  or  infraction  of  the  articles  of  the 
present  convention,  the  officers  of  either  party,  without  permitting  them- 
selves to  commit  any  violence  or  act  of  force,  shall  be  bound  to  make 
an  exact  report  of  the  affair  and  of  its  circumstances  to  their  respective 
courts,  who  will  terminate  such  differences  in  an  amicable  manner. 


il 


(2.) 

Convention  betteem  the  United  States  of  America  and  Great  Britain^ 
signed  at  London,  October  2Qth,  1818. 

Article  2.  It  is  agreed  that  a  line  drawn  from  the  most  north-western 
point  of  the  Lake  of  the  Woods,  along  the  49th  parallel  of  north  latitude, 
or,  if  the  said  point  shall  not  be  in  the  49th  parallel  of  north  latitude,  then 
that  a  line  drawn  from  the  said  point  due  north  or  south,  as  the  case  may 
be,  until  the  said  line  shall  intersect  the  said  parallel  of  north  latitude, 
and  from  the  point  of  such  intersection  due  west  along  and  with  the  said 

Earallel,  shall  be  the  line  of  demarkation  between  the  territories  of  the 
United  States  and  those  of  his  Britr  nic  majesty  ;  and  that  the  said  line 
shall  form  the  northern  boundary  of  the  s&id  territories  of  the  United 
States,  and  the  southern  boundary  of  the  territories  of  his  Britannic 
majesty,  from  the  Lake  of  the  Woods  to  the  Stony  Mountains. 

Art.  3.  It  is  agreed  that  any  country  that  may  be  claimed  by  either 
party  on  the  north-west  coast  of  America,  westward  of  the  Stony  Moun- 
tains, shall,  together  with  its  harbors,  bays,  and  creeks,  and  the  naviga- 
tion of  all  rivers  within  the  same,  be  free  and  open  for  the  term  of 
ten  years  from  the  date  of  the  signature  of  the  present  convention,  to  the 
vessels,  citizens,  and  subjects,  of  the  two  powers ;  it  being  well  understood 
that  this  agreement  is  not  to  be  construed  to  the  prejudice  of  any  claim 
which  either  of  the  two  high  contracting  parties  may  have  to  any  part  of 
the  said  country,  nor  shall  it  be  taken  to  affect  the  claims  of  any  oiher 
power  or  state  to  any  part  of  the  said  country ;  the  only  object  of  the 
high  contracting  parties,  in  that  respect,  being  to  prevent  disputes  and 
differences  among  themselves. 


PI 

!:  ''I 
iiii' 


478 


PRU0F8   AND   ILLUSTRATIONf. 


[K. 


i  ' 


/     ! 


(3.) 

TVe€Uy  of  Amity',  Settlement,  and  Limitit,  between  the  United  States  and 
Spain,  {commonly  called  the  Florida  Treaty,)  signed  at  Washing- 
ton, February  ^d,  1819. 

Article  3.  The  boundary  line  between  the  two  countries  west  of  the 
Mississippi  shall  begin  on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  at  the  mouth  of  the  River 
Sabine,  in  the  sen,.continuing  north,  along  the  western  bank  of  that  river, 
to  the  32(1  degree  of  latitude;  thence,  by  aline  due  north,  to  the  degree 
of  latitude  where  it  strikes  the  Rio  Roxo  of  Natchitoches,  or  Red  River ; 
then,  following  the  course  of  the  Rio  Roxo  westward,  to  the  degree  of 
longitude  100  west  from  London  and  23  from  Washington ;  then  crossing 
the  said  Red  River,  and  running  thence,  by  a  line  due  north,  to  the 
River  Arkansas ;  thence  following  the  course  of  the  southern  bank  of  the 
Arkansas,  to  its  source  in  latitude  42  north ;  and  thence,  by  that  parallel 
of  latitude,  to  the  South  Sea;  the  whole  being  a<>  laid  down  in  Melish's 
map  of  the  United  States,  published  at  Philadelphia,  improved  to  the  1st 
of  January,  1818.  But,  if  the  source  of  the  Arkansas  River  shall  be  found 
to  fall  north  or  south  of  latitude  42,  then  the  line  shall  run  from  the  said 
source  due  south  or  north,  as  the  case  may  be,  till  it  meets  the  said  par- 
allel of  latitude  42,  and  thence,  along  the  said  parallel,  to  the  South  Sea; 
all  the  islands  in  the  Sabine,  and  the  said  Red  and  Arkansas  Rivers, 
throughout  the  course  thus  described,  to  belong  to  the  United  States ;  but 
the  use  of  the  waters  and  the  navigation  of  the  Sabine  to  the  sea,  and  of 
the  said  Rivers  Roxo  and  Arkansas,  throughout  the  extent  of  the  said 
boundary,  on  their  respective  banks,  shall  be  common  to  the  respective 
inhabitants  of  both  nations. 

The  two  high  contracting  parties  agree  to  cede  and  renounce  all  their 
lights,  claims,  and  pretensions,  to  the  territories  described  by  the  said 
line ;  that  is  to  sny,  the  United  States  hereby  cede  to  his  Catholic  majesty, 
and  renounce  forever,  all  their  rights,  claims,  and  pretensions,  to  the  terri- 
torie's  lying  west  and  south  of  the  above-described  line ;  and,  in  like  man 
ner,  his  Catholic  majesty  cedes  to  the  said  Ignited  States  all  his  rights, 
claims,  and  pretensions,  to  any  territories  east  and  north  of  the  said  line ; 
and  for  himself,  his  heirs,  and  successors,  renounces  all  claim  to  the  said 
territories  forever. 

(4.) 

Convention  between  the  United  States  and  Russia,  signed  at  St.  Peters- 
burg, on  the  -^  of  April,  1824. 

Article  1.  It  is  agreed  that,  in  any  part  of  the  great  ocean,  commonly 
called  the  Pacific  Ocean,  or  South  Sea,  the  respective  citizens  or  subjects 
of  the  high  contracting  powers  shall  be  neither  disturbed  nor  restrained, 
either  in  navigation  or  in  fishing,  or  in  the  power  of  resorting  to  the 
coasts,  upon  points  which  may  not  already  have  been  occupied,  for  the 
purpose  of  trading  with  the  natives ;  saving  always  the  restrictions  and 
conditions  determined  by  the  following  articles. 


K.] 


PROOrS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


479 


Art.  2.  With  the  view  of  preventing  the  rights  of  navigation  and 
iishinff,  exercised  upon  the  great  ocean  by  tiie  citizens  and  subjects  o. 
the  hisb  antracting  powers,  from  becoming  the  pretext  for  an  illicit 
trade,  it  is  agreed  that  the  citizens  of  the  United  States  shall  not  resort  to 
any  point  where  there  is  a  Russian  establishment,  without  the  permission 
of  the  governor  or  commander ;  and  that,  reciprocally,  the  subjects  of 
Russia  shall  not  resort,  without  permission,  to  any  establishment  of  the 
United  States  upon  the  north-west  coast. 

Art.  3.  It  is,  moreover,  agreed  that  hereafter  there  shall  not  be 
formed  by  the  citizens  of  the  United  States,  or  under  the  authority  of  the 
said  States,  any  establishment  upon  the  north-west  coast  of  America,  nor 
in  any  of  the  islands  adjacent^  to  the  north  of  54  degrees  and  40  minutes 
of  north  latitude ;  and  that,  in  the  same  manner,  there  shall  be  none 
formed  by  Russian  subjects,  or  under  the  authority  of  Russia,  south  of 
the  same  parallel. 

Art.  4.  It  is,  nevertheless,  understood  that,  during  a  term  of  ten 
years,  counting  from  the  signature  of  the  present  convention,  the  ships  of 
both  powers,  or  which  belong  to  their  citizens  or  subjects,  respectively, 
may  reciprocally  frequent,  without  any  hinderance  whatever,  the  interior 
seas,  gulfs,  harbors,  and  creeks,  upon  the  coast  mentioned  in  the  pre- 
ceding article,  for  the  purpose  of  fishing  and  trading  with  the  natives 
of  the  country. 

Art.  5.  All  spirituous  liquors,  fire-arms,  other  arms,  powder,  and 
munitions  of  war  of  every  kind,  are  always  excepted  from  this  same  com- 
merce permitted  by  the  preceding  article;  and  the  two  powers  engage, 
reciprocally,  neither  to  sell,  nor  suffer  them  to  be  sold,  to  the  natives,  by 
their  respective  citizens  and  subjects,  nor  by  any  person  who  may  be 
under  their  authority.  It  is  likewise  stipulated,  that  this  restriction  shall 
never  afford  a  pretext,  nor  be  advanced,  in  any  case,  to  authorize  either 
search  or  detention  of  the  vessels,  seizure  of  the  merchandise,  or,  in  fine, 
any  measures  of  constraint  whatever,  towards  the  merch^ts  or  the  crews 
who  may  carry  on  this  commerce ;  the  high  contracting  powers  recipro- 
cally reserving  to  themselves  to  determine  upon  the  penalties  to  be 
incurred,  and  to  inflict  the  punishments  in  case  of  the  contravention  of 
this  article  by  their  respective  citizens  or  subjects. 


wm 


(5.) 


Convention  between  Cheat  Britain  and  Russia,  signed  at  St.  Peters- 
burg, February  ^|,  1825, 

Article  1.  It  is  agreed  that  the  respective  subjects  of  the  high  con- 
tracting parties  shall  not  be  troubled  or  molested  in  any  part  of  the  ocean 
commonly  called  the  Pacific  Ocean,  either  in  navigating  the  same,  in 
fishing  therein,  or  in  landing  at  such  parts  of  the  coast  as  shall  not  have 
been  already  occupied,  in  order  to  trade  with  the  natives,  under  the 
restrictions  and  conditions  specified  in  the  following  articles. 

Art.  2.  In  order  to  prevent  the  right  of  navigating  and  fishing,  exer- 
cised upon  the  ocean  by  the  subjects  of  the  high  contracting  parties,  from 
becoming  the  pretext  for  an  illicit  commerce,  it  is  agreed  that  the  subjects 


480 


PBOOrS    AND    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


[K. 


.    1':-    ! 


of  his  Britannic  majesty  shall  not  land  at  any  place  where  there  may  be  a 
Russian  establishment!  without  the  permission  of  the  governor  or  com- 
mandant ;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  that  Russian  subjects  shall  not  land, 
without  permission,  at  any  British  establishment  on  the  nortli-west  coast. 

Art.  3.  The  line  of  demarkation  between  the  possessions  of  the  high 
contracting  parties,  upon  the  coast  of  the  continent,  and  the  islands  of 
America  to  the  north-west,  shall  be  drawn  in  the  manner  following :  Com- 
mencing from  the  southernmost  point  of  the  island  called  Prince  of  Wales's 
Island,  which  point  lies  in  the  parallel  of  54  degrees  40  minutes  north 
latitude,  and  between  the  131st  and  the  133d  degree  of  west  longitude, 
(meridian  of  Greenwich,)  the  said  line  shall  ascend  to  the  north  along 
the  channel  called  Portland  Channel,  as  far  as  the  point  of  the  continent 
where  it  strikes  the  56th  degree  of  north  latitude.  From  this  last-men- 
tioned point,  the  line  of  demarkation  shall  follow  the  summit  of  the  moun- 
tains situated  parallel  to  the  coast,  as  far  as  the  point  of  intersection  of  the 
141'st  degree  of  west  longitude,  (of  the  same  meridian.)  And,  finally, 
from  Ihe  said  point  of  intersection,  the  said  meridian  line  of  the  Hist 
degree,  in  its  prolongation  as  far  as  the  Frozen  Ocean,  shall  form  the 
limit  between  the  Russian  and  British  possessions  on  the  cont'u^nt  of 
America  to  the  north-west. 

Art.  4.  With  reference  to  the  line  of  demarkation  laid  down  in  the 
preceding  article,  it  is  understood  — 

1st.  That  the  island  called  Prince  of  Wales's  Island  shall  belong 
wholly  to  Russia. 

Sd.  That  whenever  the  summit  of  the  mountains  which  extend  in  a 
direction  parallel  to  the  coast,  from  the  56th  degree  of  north  latitude  to 
the  point  of  intersection  of  the  Hist  degree  of  west  longitude,  shall  prove 
to  be  at  the  distance  of  more  than  ten  marine  leagues  from  the  ocean,  the 
limit  between  the  British  possessions  and  the  live  of  coast  which  is  to 
belong  to  Russia,  as  above  mentioned,  shall  be  forn)<fd  by  a  line  parallel  to 
the  windings  of  the  coast,  and  which  shall  never  exceed  the  distance  of 
ten  marine  leagues  therefrom. 

Art.  5.  It  is,  moreover,  agreed  that  no  establishment  shall  be  formed 
by  either  of  the  two  parties  within  the  limits  assigned  by  the  two  preced- 
ing articles  to  the  possessions  of  the  other ;  consequently,  British  subjects 
shall  not  form  any  establishment  either  upon  the  coast,  or  upon  the  border 
of  the  continent  comprised  within  the  limits  of  the  Russian  possessions,  as 
designated  in  the  two  preceding  articles ;  and,  in  like  manner,  no  estab- 
lishment shall  be  formed  by  Russian  subjects  beyond  the  said  limits. 

Art.  6.  It  is  understood  that  the  subjects  of  his  Britannic  majesty, 
fi-om  whatever  quarter  they  may  arrive,  whether  from  the  ocean  or  from 
the  interior  of  the  continent,  shall  forever  enjoy  the  right  of  navigating 
freely,  and  without  any  hinderance  whatever,  all  the  rivers  and  streams 
which,  in  their  course  towards  the  Pacific  Ocean,  may  cross  the  line  of 
demarkation  upon  the  line  of  coast  described  in  article  3  of  the  present 
convention. 

Art.  7.  It  is  also  understood  that,  for  the  space  of  ten  years  from  the 
signature  of  the  present  convention,  the  vessels  of  the  two  powers,  or 
those  belonging  to  their  respective  subjects,  shall  mutually  be  at  liberty 
to  frequent,  without  any  hinderance  whatever,  all  the  inland  seas,  the 
gulfs,  havens,  and  creeks,  on  the  coast,  mentioned  in  article  3,  for  the 
purposes  of  fishing  and  of  trading  with  the  natives. 


[K. 


K.J 


PROOra    AND    ILLUSTHATIOM. 


481 


9  may  be  a 
)r  or  com- 
1  not  land, 
west  coast, 
of  the  high 
islands  of 
ing:  Com* 
ofWales's 
lutes  north 
;  longitude, 
lorth  along 
e  continent 
is  last-men- 
f  the  mouii- 
ction  of  the 
,nd,  finally, 
if  the  l4lBt 
ill  form  the 
lont'usnt  of 

dcwp  in  the 

ihall  belong 

extend  in  a 
h  latitude  to 
!,  shall  prove 
e  ocean, the 

which  is  to 
le  parallel  to 

distance  of 

be  formed 
two  preced- 
tish  subjects 
n  the  border 
flsessions,  as 
er,  no  estab- 
limits. 
nic  majesty, 
ean  or  from 
f  navigating 
and  streams 
the  line  of 
the  present 

|ars  from  the 
powers,  or 
Ibe  at  liberty 
lid  seas,  the 
3,  for  the 


Art.  8.  The  port  of  Sitka,  or  Novo  ArchangeUk,  shall  be  open  to  the 
commerce  and  vessels  of  British  subjects  for  the  space  of  ten  years  from 
the  date  of  the  exchange  of  the  ratification!  of  the  present  convention.  In 
the  event  of  an  extension  of  this  term  of  ten  years  being  granted  to  any 
other  power,  the  like  extension  shall  be  granted  also  to  Great  Britain. 

Art.  9.  The  above-mentioned  liberty  of  commerce  shall  not  apply  to 
the  trade  in  spirituous  liquors,  in  fire-arms,  or  other  arms,  gunpowder,  or 
other  warlike  stores ;  the  high  contracting  parties  reciprocally  engaging 
not  to  permit  the  above-mentioned  articles  to  be  sold  or  delivered,  m  any 
manner  whatever,  to  the  natives  of  the  country. 

Art.  10.  Every  British  or  Russian  vessel  navigating  the  Pacific 
Ocean,  which  may  be  compelled  by  storms  or  by  accident  to  take  shelter 
in  the  ports  of  the  respective  parties,  shall  be  at  liberty  to  refit  therein, 
to  provide  itself  with  all  necessary  stores,  and  to  put  to  sea  again,  without 
paying  any  other  than  port  and  lighthouse  dues,  which  shall  be  the  same 
as  those  paid  by  national  vessels.  In  case,  however,  the  master  of  such 
vessel  should  be  under  the  necessity  of  disposing  of  a  part  of  his  merchan- 
dise in  order  to  defray  his  expenses,  he  shall  conform  himself  to  the  regu- 
lations and  tariffs  of  the  place  where  he  may  have  landed. 

Art.  11.  In  every  case  of  complaint  on  account  of  an  infraction  of 
the  articles  of  the  present  convention,  the  civil  and  military  authorities 
of  the  high  contracting  parties,  without  previously  acting,  or  taking  any 
forcible  measure,  shall  make  an  exact  and  circumstantial  report  of  the 
matter  to  their  respective  courts,  who  engage  to  settle  the  same  in  a 
friendly  manner,  and  according  to  the  principles  of  justice. 


(6.) 

Convention  bettoeen  the  United  Slates  and  Cheat  Britain^  signed  at 
London,  August  6th,  1827. 

Article  1.  All  the  provisions  of  the  third  article  of  the  convention 
concluded  between  the  United  States  of  America  and  his  majesty  the  king 
of  the  United  Kingdom  of  Great  Britain  and  Ireland,^  on  the  20th  of 
October,  1818,  shall  be,  and  they  are  hereby,  further  indefinitely  extended 
and  continued  in  force,  in  the  same  manner  as  if  all  the  provisions  of  the 
said  article  were  herein  specifically  recited. 

Art.  2.  It  shall  be  competent,  however,  to  either  of  the  contracting 
parties,  in  case  either  should  think  fit,  at  any  time  after  the  20th  of  Octo- 
ber, 1828,  on  giving  due  notice  of  twelve  months  to  the  other  contracting 
party,  to  annul  and  abrogate  this  convention ;  and  it  shall,  in  such  case, 
be  accordingly  entirely  annulled  and  abrogated,  after  the  expiration  of  the 
said  term  of  notice. 

Art.  3.  Nothing  contained  in  this  convention,  or  in  the  third  article 
of  the  convention  of  the  20th  October,  1818,  hereby  continued  in  force, 
shall  be  construed  to  impair,  or  in  any  manner  affect,  the  claims  which 
either  of  the  contracting  parties  may  have  to  any  part  of  the  country  west- 
ward of  the  Stcny  or  Rocky  Mountains. 

61 


GENERAL    INDEX, 


I 


I   ■,  .*■ 


GENERAL   INDEX. 


Adams,  John  Q.,  United  States  miniater 
at  St.  Petersburg,  correspondence  with 
the  Russian  government  respecting 
American  traders  on  the  north-west 
coast,  275.  Secretary  of  state  of  the 
United  States ;  negotiations  with  Spain 
on  the  southern  and  western  limits  of 
the  United  States,  316.  Correspond- 
ence with  the  Russian  minister  at 
Washington  on  the  ukase  of  1831. 
332.  Instructions  to  Mr.  Rush,  United 
States  minister  at  London,  on  claims 
of  the  United  States,  in  1823,  340. 
President  of  the  United  States ;  message 
recommending  the  adoption  of  measures 
respecting  Oreeon,  344. 

Aguilar,  Martin  ae,  voyage  and  supposed 
discovery  of  a  great  river  on  the  north- 
west coast,  92. 

Alarcon,  Hernando,  voyasre  up  the  Cali- 
fornian  Gulf  end  the  Colorado  River,  60. 

Aleutian  Islands  described,  41.  Discov- 
ered, 135. 

Aliaska  described,  38.    Discovered,  132. 

America.  This  name  first  given  to  Brazil 
in  1508.  Never  used  by  Spanish  eovern- 
ment  and  historians  until  recently,  48. 

Anian,  Strait  of,  said  to  have  been  dis- 
covered by  Cortereal,  probably  the  same 
now  called  Hudson's  Strait,  47.  Voy- 
ages in  search  of  it,  78.  See  Urdaneta, 
Ladrillero,  Maldonado,  Fontc,  Vizcaino. 

Archer,  William  S.,  his  speech  in  the 
Senate  ol  the  United  States  on  the  bill 
for  the  occupation  of  Oregon,  385, 386, 
388. 

Arteaga,  Ignacio,  voyage,  125. 

Ashley,  William  H.,  conducts  trading 
expeditions  from  St.  Louis  to  the 
Rocky  Mountain  regions,  357. 

Astoria  established,  296.  Described,  299 
—313.  Ceded  to  North- West  Compa- 
ny, 303.  Taken  bv  British,  304.  Re- 
stored to  the  United  States,  309.  Burnt, 
313.     See  Pacific  Fur  Company. 

Atlantis,  Island,  placed  by  Bacon  on  the 
north-west  coast,  97. 


B. 

Baranof,  Alexander,  governor  of  Rnsaian 
America,  his  character,  271.  Founds 
Sitka,  270.  His  mode  of  conductin|r 
negotiations,  302.  Seizes  part  of  Cali- 
fornia, 327.  Attempts  to  seize  one  of 
the  Sandwich  Islands,  328. 

Becerra,  Diego,  voyage  from  Mexico  by 
order  of  Cort6s,  54. 

Benton,  Thomas  H.,  his  speech  in  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States  on  the  bill 
for  the  occupation  of  Oregon,  384. 

Benyowsky,  Augustus,  a  Polish  erile  in 
Kamtchatka,  performs  the  first  voyage 
from  that  country  to  Canton,  138. 

Bering,  Alexander,  first  voy^e  from 
Kamtchatka  to  the  Arctic  Sea,  129. 
Second  voyage,  129.  Third  and  last 
voyage,  1^.  Reaches  the  American 
continent,  131.  Shipwreck  and  death, 
133. 

Bering's  Strait  discovered,  129.  Described, 

Berkeley,  Captain,  rediscovers  the  Strait 
of  Fuca;  murder  of  part  of  his  crewofi* 
Destruction  Island,  171. 

Berrien,  John  M.,  his  ipeech  in  the  Senate 
of  the  United  States  on  the  bill  for  the 
occupation  of  Oregon,  385. 

Billings,  Joseph,  engaged  by  the  empress 
of  Russia  to  explore  the  North  Pacific, 
162.  His  voyage  produces  no  valuable 
results,  221. 

Bodega  y  Quadra,  Juan  Francisco  de,  first 
voyage,  under  Heceta,  from  Mexico, 
along  the  north-west  coast,  1 17.  Impor- 
tance of  his  discoveries,  123.  Second 
voyage,  under  Arteaga,  125.  (See  Mau- 
relle.)  Commissioner  to  treat  with  Van- 
couver at  Nootka,  231.  (See  Nootka 
Convention.)  Letter  to  Captains  Gray 
and  Ingraham,  242,  443.     Death,  255. 

Brobdignag,  placed  by  Swifl  on  the  north- 
west coast,  near  Columbia  River,  97. 

Broughton,  William,  sent  Vy  Vancouver 
to  survey  the  lower  part  of  the  Co- 
lumbia River,  247.  Unfairness  to  the 
Americans,  248.     Sent  to  England,  249. 


486 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


)' 


1' 


|!)t 


Commands  an  exploring  expedition  in 
the  North  Pacific,  256.  Finds  Nootka 
Sound  deserted,  257. 
Bulfinch's  Harbor  discovered  by  Captain 
Gray,  of  Boston,  235.  Examined  by 
Vancouver's  lieutenant,  Whidbey,  246. 
Described,  22. 

c. 

Caamano,  Jacinto,  voyage  in  the  North- 
West  Archipelago,  241. 

Cabeza-Vaca,  Alvaro  Nufiez,  journey  from 
Florida  to  the  Californian  Gulf,  57. 

Cabot,  John,  and  Sebastian,  voyages,  47. 

Cabrillo,  Juan  Rodriguez,  exploring  voy- 
age from  Mexico,  and  death,  64. 

Calhoun,  John  C,  his  speech  in  the  Sen- 
ate of  the  United  States  on  the  bill  for 
the  occupation  of  Oregon,  383. 

California,  origin  of  the  name  unknown, 
Ni. 

California,  Peninsula  of,  described,  13. 
Discu/ered;  fruitless  attempts  of  the 
Span'.ards  to  settle,  90,  98.  Jesuits 
engage  to  civilize  the  inhabitants,  99. 
Their  partial  success,  100.  Their  His- 
tory of  California,  101.  Expulsion  of 
the  Jesuits,  106. 

Californio,  Continental,  or  New,  described, 
15.  Discovered,  58.  Settled  by  the 
Spaniards,  109.  Claimed  by  Mexico, 
317.  Attempted  msurrection  in,  307. 
Recent  events  in,  368. 

California,  Gulf  of,  described,  12.  Dis- 
covered, 54.  Examined  by  UUoa,  58 ; 
and  by  Alarcon,  60. 

Carver,  Jonathan,  travels  in  the  central 
regions  of  North  America,  141.  Pre- 
tended discovery  of  a  river  called  Ore- 
gon, flowing  into  the  Pacific,  142.  His 
accounts  chiefly  derived  from  old  French 
travellers,  144. 

Cavendish,  Thomas,  voyage  around  the 
world ;  takes  and  burns  a  Spanish  ship 
near  the  coast  of  California,  77. 

Cermeiion,  Sebastian,  wrecked  on  the 
coast  of  California,  68. 

Choate,  Rufus,  his  speech  in  the  Senate  of 
the  United  States  on  the  bill  for  the  oc- 
cupation of  Oregon,  385. 

Cibola,  a  country  or  city  north-west  of 
Mexico,  discovered  by  Friar  Marcos  de 
Niza,  59.  Supposed  position,  62.  Ex- 
pedition of  Vazquez  de  Coronado  to 
conquer  it,  61. 

Clarke.     See  Lewis  and  Clarke. 

Clarke  River  discove'ed,  286.  Described, 
23. 

Colnett,  James,  engaged  by  Meares  to 
command  the  Argonaut,  189.  Made 
prisoner  by  the  Spaniards  at  Nootka, 
and  sent  to  Mexico,  195.  Liberated  by 
order  of  the  viceroy  of  Mexico,  200. 

Columbia,  American  trading  ship,  fitted 
out  at  Boston,  179.    Sails  under  Ken- 


drick  to  the  North  Pacific,  180.  Puts 
into  Juan  Fernandez  in  distress,  181. 
Reaches  Nootka  Sound,  181.  Sails  for 
Canton  and  the  United  States,  under 
Captain  Gray,  200.  Second  voyage 
under  Gray,  229.  Winters  at  Clyo- 
quot,  230.  Discovery  of  the  Columbia 
Kiver,  235.     See  Gray  and  Vancouver. 

Columbia  River,  (called,  also,  Oregon,) 
described,  21.  Mouth  seen  by  the  Span- 
ish commander  Heceta,  120.  Meares 
seeks  for  it  in  vain,  and  denies  its  ex- 
istence, 177.  Mouth  seen  by  the  Amer- 
ican Captain  Gray,  181.  Gray  first  en- 
ters the  river,  236.  Lower  part  explored 
by  the  British  Lieutenant  Broughton, 
247,  who  unfairly  pretends  to  have  dis- 
covered it,  248.  Head-waters  discov- 
ered by  Lewis  and  Clarke,  who  trace 
the  river  thence  to  the  sea,  285.  British 
plenipotentiaries  claim  the  discovery  for 
Meares,  178. 

Convention  of  1790,  between  Great  Brit- 
ain and  Spain,  see  Nootka  Convention. 
Of  1818,  between  Great  Britain  and  the 
United  States,  concluded,  315, 477.  Re- 
newed in  1827  for  an  indefinite  period, 
354.  Reflections  on,  389.  Of  1824, 
between  the  United  States  and  Russia, 
concluded,  341,  478.  Virtually  abro- 
gated by  Russia,  342. 

Cook,  James,  undertakes  a  voyage  of 
discovery  in  the  North  Pacific ;  his  in- 
structions, 147.  Discovers  the  Sand- 
wich Islands,  150.  Reaches  Nootka 
Sound,  151.  Passes  through  Bering's 
Straits,  156.  Killed  at  the  Sandwich 
Islands,  157.  Importance  of  his  dis- 
coveries, 158.  Knew  no  particulars 
of  the  recent  Spanish  voyages,  149; 
though  he  knew  that  srch  voyages 
had  been  made,  152. 

Coronado,  Francisco  Vazquez,  expedition 
from  Mexico,  to  conquer  the  ricn  coun- 
tries supposed  to  lie  farther  north-west, 
61. 

Cortereal,  Gaspar,  discovers  Labrador; 
Strait  of  Anian  said  to  have  been 
found  by  him,  leadinfr  from  the  At- 
lantic north-west  to  the  Pacific,  47. 

Cortes,  Hernando,  conquers  Mexico,  and 
proposes  to  exploie  the  coasts  of  that 
country,  50.  Expeditions  made  by  his 
order  on  the  Pacific,  53.  Leads  an 
expedition  into  California,  55.  Super- 
seded in  the  government  of  Mexico,  to 
which  country  he  returns,  56.  Claims 
the  right  to  make  conquests  in  America ; 
returns  to  Spain,  and  dies,  60. 


Dixon,  George,  voyage  in  the  North  Pa- 
cific, 169.     Dispute  with  Meares,  218. 

Douglai,  William,  master  of  the  Iphige- 
nia;  voyage  under  Meares  to  the  North 


GKNEIUL    INDEX. 


487 


Pacific,  172.     Taken  prisoner  by  the 
Spaniards  at  Nootka,  191.    Released, 

lya. 

Drake,  Franciu,  voyage  around  the  world, 
72.  Arrives  in  the  North  Pacific,  and 
lands  on  the  American  coast,  73.  Re- 
ceives from  the  natives  the  crown  of 
the  country,  which  he  calls  New  Albi- 
on, and  returns  to  England,  74.  Re- 
view of  accounts  of  his  voyage  in  the 
North  Pacific,  75.  Part  of  the  coast 
probably  seen  by  him,  76. 

Duffin,  Robert,  mate  of  Meares'a  vessel, 
enters  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  176.  Testi- 
mony respectin'g  events  at  Nootka,  244. 


Falkland  Islands,  dispute  between  Great 
Britain  and  Spain  respecting  them, 
111.  Lord  Palmerston's  letter  to  the 
minister  of  Buenos  Ayres  on  the  sub- 
ject of  their  occupation  by  Great  Brit- 
ain, 111—313,  374. 

Fidalgo,  Salvador,  voyage  of,  220. 

Fleurieu,  Clairet  de,  his  Introduction  to 
the  Journal  of  Marchand's  voyage,  223. 
Admits  the  discovery  of  the  Washing- 
ton or  NorUi  Marquesas  Islands  by 
Ingraham,  228. 

Florida,  the  name  applied  originally  by 
the  Spaniards  to  the  whole  eastern  side 
of  America,  north  of  the  Mexican 
Gulf,  55.  Expeditions  through  it  un- 
der Narvaez,  57,  and  Soto,  65.  Ceded 
to  the  United  States,  316. 

Font6,  Admiral,  supposed  voyage,  in  the 
North  Pacific,  by  a  person  so  named, 
84. 

Forsyth,  John,  secretary  of  state  of  the 
United  States,  instructions  respecting 
the  meaning  of  tlie  convention  with 
Russia,  362.  Endeavors  to  procure  in- 
formation respecting  the  north-west 
coast,  376. 

Fox,  Charles  J.,  his  speech  in  Parliament 
on  the  Nootka  convention,  212. 

Fuca,  Juan  de,  voyage  in  the  North 
Pacific,  and  supposed  discovery  of  a 
new  passage  leading  to  the  Atlantic, 
87,  407. 

Fuca,  Strait  of,  described,  22.  Discovered 
by  Juan  de  Fuca,  87.  Search  for  it  by 
Heceta,  119.  By  Cook,  150.  Found  by 
Berkeley,  171 .  'Rediscovery  claimed  by 
Meares,  175.  Entered  by  Gray,  19!), 
2:34.  Kendrick  passes  through  it,  200, 
217.  Surveyed  by  Vancouver,  and  Ga- 
liano,  and  Valdes,  238 

Furs  and  fur  trad?,  geneial  account,  411. 
■See  Russian  American  Company,  Hud- 
son's Bay  Company,  and  North- West 
Company. 


G. 

Gallatin,  Albert,  minister  plenipotentiary 
of  the  United  States  at  London ;  ne- 
gotiations at  London,  314,  344.  Coun- 
ter statement  respecting  the  claims  of 
the  United  States,  presented  by  him  to 
British  commissioners,  347,  455. 

Gali,  Francisco,  his  voyage,  68. 

Galiano  and  Valdes,  their  voyage  through 
the  Strait  of  Fuca,  240.  Journal  pub- 
lished by  the  Spanish  government; 
Introduction  to  that  Journal  reviewed, 
241. 

Gray,  Robert,  first  voyage  to  the  North 
Pacific,  in  command  of  the  trading  sloop 
Washington,  from  Boston,  180.  Sees 
an  opening  supposed  to  be  the  mouth  of 
the  Columbia  River,  181.  First  exam- 
ines the  east  coast  of  Washington's  or 
Queen  Charlotti  h  Island,  199.  Enters 
the  Strait  of  Fuca,  200.  Returns  to 
Boston  in  the  ship  Columbia,  200. 
Second  voyage  to  the  North  Pacific,  in 
the  Columbia,  226,  229.  MeeU  Van- 
couver near  the  entrance  of  the  Strait  of 
Fuca,  and  makes  known  his  discovery 
of  the  mouth  of  a  great  river,  233.  Dis- 
covers Bulfinch's  Harbor,  235.  Enters 
the  great  river,  which  he  names  the 
Columbia,  236.  Makes  known  his  dis- 
covery to  the  Spanish  commandant  at 
Nootka,  237.  Letter  of  Gray  and  In- 
graham to  the  Spanish  commandant, 
respecting  the  occurrences  at  Nootka 
in  1789,  242, 413.  Returns  to  the  Unit- 
ed States,  237. 


H. 

Harmon,  D.  W.,  important  evidence 
afforded  by  him  respecting  the  first 
trading  posts  established  by  the  British 
west  of  tlie  Rocky  Mountains,  291. 

Hawaii.     See  Owyhee. 

Hearne,  Samuel,  discoveries  in  the  territo- 
ry west  of  Hudson's  Bay,  145.  Reaches 
the  Arctic  Sea,  at  the  mouth  of  Cop- 
permine River,  146. 

Heceta,  Bruno,  voyage  along  the  north- 
west coast  of  America,  in  1775,  117. 
Discovers  a  river,  called  by  him  Rio  de 
San  Roque,  now  called  the  Columbia, 
120. 

Henderson,  John,  speech  in  the  Senate  of 
the  United  States  on  the  bill  for  the 
occupation  of  Oregon,  382. 

Howel's  account  of  the  negotiation  at 
Nootka  between  Vancouver  and  Qua- 
dra, 245. 

Hudson,  Henry,  discovers  Hudson's  Bay, 
97. 

Hudson's  Bay  Company  established  by 
charter,   97.     Efforts   to   discover    a 


488 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


«* 


'    . 


i 


^.  1 


north-weit  pusage,  141 .  Disputes  with 
the  North- West  Company,  2«i0,  324. 
Union  of  these  two  companies,  326. 
Receives  a  grant  of  exclusive  trade  in 
the  Tndian  territories.  326.  General 
view  of  its  system  and  establishments, 
397.    Papers  relating  to  it,  405. 

Hudson's  Strait,  probably  the  some  called 
by  the  Portuguese  the  Strait  of^man,47. 

Hunt,  Wilson  P.,  chief  agent  of  the  Pa- 
cific Fur  Company,  295.  His  neeotia- 
tions  with  Governor  Baranof  at  Sitka, 
302. 

Huntingdon,  Jabez  W.,  speech  in  the 
Senate  of  the  United  States  on  the  bill 
for  the  occupation  of  Oregon,  382. 


Ingraham,  Joseph,  mate  of  the  ship  Co- 
lumbia, in  her  first  voyage  from  Boston 
to  the  north-west  coast,  180.  Returns 
to  the  Fncific  as  master  of  the  brig 
Hope,  and  discovers  the  Washing- 
ton or  North  Marquesas  Islands,  226. 
At  the  Sandwich  Islands,  227.  At 
Queen  Chailotte's  Island,  227.  At  Ma- 
cao, where  he  meets  Marchand,  and 
communicates  his  discovery  of  the 
Washington  Islands,  the  priority  of 
which  is  admitted  by  Marchand  and 
Fleurieu,  228.  At  Nootka,  where  he 
writes  a  letter,  signed  by  himself  and 
Gray,  respecting  the  proceedings  at 
that  place  in  1789,  242.  Copy  of  that 
letter,  414.  Unfair  synopsis  of  it  by 
Vancouver,  244.  His  journal,  231.  His 
death,  237. 

Jesuits  undertake  the  reduction  of  Cali- 
fornia, 99.  Their  system  and  establish- 
ments, 100.  Their  History  of  Califor- 
nia, 101.  Expelled  from  the  Spanish 
dominions,  106.  Results  of  their  labors 
in  California,  107. 

Jesup,  Thomas  S.,  quartermaster-general 
of  the  United  States ;  report  on  the 
best  means  of  occupying  Oregon,  336. 
Effect  uf  that  report  on  the  negotia- 
tions in  Europe,  337. 

Jewitt,  J.  R.,  his  captivity  among  the  In- 
dians at  Nootka,  268. 


K. 


Kamtchatka  described,  39.  Conquered 
by  the  Cossacks,  128.  Its  position  on 
the  Pacific  ascertained,  129. 

Kendrick,  John,  commands  the  first  trad- 
ing expeditiou  from  the  United  States 
to  the  North  Pacific,  179.    Arrives  at 


Nootka,  181.  Sails  in  the  sloop  Wash 
ington  through  the  Strait  of  Fuca, 
20U,  217.  The  first  who  engaged  in 
the  transportation  of  sandal-wood  from 
the  Sandwich  Islands  to  Canton,  228. 
His  purchases  of  lands  from  the  Indians 
at  Nootka ;  accidentallv  killed,  S£J9. 

Kodiak  Island,  37.  Settlement  on  it  by 
the  Russians,  161. 

Krenitzin  and  Levaschef,  voyage  of,  137. 

Kriisenstern,  A.  J.  von,  commands  a 
Russian  exploring  expedition  to  the 
Pacific,  272.  His  ereat  merit  as  a  navi- 
gator ;  his  journal  of  the  expedition ; 
efiicient  in  the  reform  of  abuses  in 
Russian  America,  274 


Ladrillero,  Juan,  an  old  Spanish  pilot, 
who  pretended  to  havemaae  a  northern 
voyage  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific, 
79. 

Ledyard,  John,  corporal  of  marines  in 
Cook's  expedition,  149.  E8caj>es  from 
a  British  ship,  off  the  coast  of  Coi>necti- 
cut,  162.  Endeavors  to  obtain  means 
to  engage  in  the  fur  trade ;  attempts 
to  ffo  by  land  from  Paris  to  Kamt- 
chatka ;  arrested  at  Irkutsk,  and 
forced  to  return ;  attempts  to  discover 
the  source  of  the  Nile,  and  dies  at 
Cairo,  163. 

Lewis,  Meriwether,  and  John  Clarke, 
commissioned  by  President  JefiTerson  to 
explore  the  Missouri  and  Columbia 
countries,  284.  Voyage  up  the  Mis- 
souri to  its  sources;  passage  through 
the  Rocky  Mountains,  ^5.  Descend 
the  Columbia  to  the  Pacific;  winter 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  286. 
Return  to  the  United  States,  287.  Gen- 
eral results  of  their  expedition;  their 
Journal  written  by  Lewis ;  melancholy 
death  of  Lewis,  288. 

Lewis,    or    Snake,  or   Sahaptin    River, 

firincipal  southern  branch  of  the  Co- 
umbia,  discovered  by  Lewisand  Clarke, 
287.    Described,  24. 

Linn,  Lewis  F.,  his  bill  and  speeches  in 
the  Senate  of  the  United  States  on  the 
occupation  of  Oregon,  379,  387. 

Louisiana,  settled  by  the  French ;  grant- 
ed by  Louis  XIV.  to  Crozat,  227  ;  and 
afterwards  to  Law,  228.  Ceded  by 
France  to  Spain ;  retroceded  by  Spain 
to  France,  and  sold  by  France  to  the 
United  States,  279.  lU  extent  at  dif 
fercnt  times,  280.  Comprehended  no 
territory  west  of  the  Rocky  Mountains, 
5^3.  Northern  boundary  not  deter- 
mined by  commissaries  agrceablv  to  the 
treaty  of  Utrecht,  as  generally  sup- 
posed, 281,  436. 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


489 


•    ■    -  M. 

MacDougal,  Duncan,  partner  in  the  Pa- 
cific Company,  294.  Sells  the  eatab- 
liBhments  to  tne  North- West  Company, 
303.    See  Astoria. 

MacDuffie,  George,  speech  in  the  Senate 
of  the  United  States  on  the  bill  for  the 
occupation  of  Oregon,  382. 

MacKenzie,  Alexan&r,  explores  the  north- 
western parts  of  America;  reaches  the 
Arctic  Sea,  263.  Reaches  the  Pacific, 
264.  Mackenzie  River  discovered  by 
MacKenzie,  263. 

MacRoberts,  Samuel,  speech  in  the  Senate 
of  the  United  States  on  the  bill  for  tho 
occupation  of  Oregon,  382. 

Magellan,  Fernando,  sails  from  the  Atlan- 
tic through  Magellan's  Strait  into  the 
Pacific,  and  across  the  latter  ocean  to 
India,  48. 

Malaspina,  Alezandro,  explores  the  coasts 
near  Mount  St.  Elios,  in  search  of  a 
passage  supposed  to  communicate  with 
the  Atlantic;  arrested  and  imprisoned 
on  his  return  to  Spain ;  his  name  not 
mentioned  in  the  account  of  his  voyage 
oiBciallv  published  at  Madrid,  222. 

Maldonado,  Lorenzo  Ferrer  de,  account 
of  his  pretended  voyage  from  the  At- 
lantic to  the  Pacific,  79. 

Maquinna,  chief  of  Nootka,  167.  Grants 
land  to  Meares  for  his  temporary  use, 
1741  Denies  that  the  British  had  bought 
lands  or  erected  buildings  at  Nooua, 
242.  Takes  the  ship  Boston,  of  Boston, 
and  murders  nearly  all  her  crew,  268. 

Marchand,  Etienne,  commands  the  ship 
Solide,  from  Marseilles,  in  her  voyage 
around  the  world,  223.  Sees  the  islands 
which  had  been  previously  discovered 
by  Ingraham,  of  which  he  sent  an  ac- 
count to  France,  claiming  the  discovery. 
Ingraham's  claim  admitted  by  Fleu- 
rieu,  the  editor  of  Marchand's  Journal; 
Journal  of  Marchand's  voyage,  edited 
by  Fleurieu;  general  character  of  the 
work,  223.    See  Fleurieu. 

Marcos  de  Niza,  a  Franciscan  friat',  pre- 
tends to  have  discovered  a  rich  and 
populous  country,  called  Cibola,  north- 
west of  Mexico,  59. 

Marquesas  Islands,  discovered  by  Menda« 
na,  95.  North  Marquesas  or  Washing- 
ton Islands,  discovered  by  Ingraham, 
226.  These  islands  occupied  by  the 
French,  374. 

Martinez,  Estevan,  pilot  to  Perez,  in  the 
Santiago ;  pretends  to  have  rediscovered 
the  Strait  of  Fuca,  116.  Commands 
in  a  voyage  of  observation  to  the  coasts 
occupied  by  the  Russians,  185.  Or- 
dered by  the  viceroy  of  Mexico  to  oc- 
cupy Nootka  Sound,  187.  Arrives  at 
Nootka,   191.     Seizes  the  Iphigenia, 

m 


but  afterwards  releases  her,  li>2.  Seizes 
the  North- West  America,  194.  Seizes 
the  Argonaut,  and  imprisons  her  cap- 
tain, 1%.  Seizes  the  Princess  Royal, 
198.  Reflections  on  these  acU,  197. 
Returns  to  Mexico,  198. 

Maurelle,  Antonio,  pilot,  under  Bodega, 
in  his  voyages  along  the  north-west 
coasts,  117  — 125.  His  Journal  of  the 
first  of  these  voyages,  translated  and 
prir.ted  at  London,  117.  Importance 
of  this  work,  123.  His  Journal  of  the 
other  voyage,  125. 

Meares,  John,  hii  first  voyage  to  the 
north-west  coast,  166.  His  second  voy- 
age, under  the  Portuguese  flag,  with 
the  Felice  and  Iphigenia,  172.  In- 
structed to  take  any  vessels  which 
may  attempt  to  molest  him,  but  not  in- 
structed to  form  any  establishment  or 
purchase  lands,  173.  Reasons  for  his 
sailing  under  the  Portuguese  flag,  174. 
Arrives  in  the  I^  ulice  at  Nootka,  where 
he  obtains  from  Maquinna  the  use  of  a 

Eiece  of  ground,  afterwards  claimed  by 
im  as  purchased,  174.  Receives  from 
Berkeley  an  account  of  the  rediscovery 
of  the  Strait  of  Fuca,  by  the  latter,  171. 
Yet  claims  the  meitt  of  the  rediscovery 
himself,  175.  Seeks  in  vain  for  the 
great  River  San  Roque,  (the  Columbia^ 
as  laid  down  on  Spanish  charts,  176. 
Declares  that  no  such  river  exists,  177. 
Yet  the  British  government  claims  the 
discovery  of  the  Columbia  for  him,  178, 
440.  His  account  of  the  arrival  of  the 
sloop  Washington  at  Nootka,  181.  Re- 
turns to  China,  180.  Sent  to  London, 
to  complain  of  the  seizure  of  the  vessels 
at  Nootka,  by  the  Spaniards,  202.  His 
memorial  to  the  British  government, 
203.  Its  niunerous  falsehoods  ar)  in- 
consistencies, 172,  175,  178,  193,  211. 

Mendocino,  Cape,  19.    Discovered,  65. 

Mendoza,  Antonio  de,  sent  as  viceroy  to 
supersede  Cort6s  in  the  government  of 
Mexico,  56.  Attempts  to  discover  new 
countries  in  America,  57. 

Mendoza,  Diego  Hurtado,  commands  the 
ships  sent  by  Cortes  to  explore  the  Pa- 
cific coasts  of  America,  53. 

Metcalf,  voyage  of,  fires  on  the  natives 
at  Mowee,  224.  Young  Metcalf  and 
his  crew  murdered  by  the  natives  of 
Owyhee,  225. 

Moncachtab6,  an  Indian,  his  account  of  a 
great  river,flowing  from  the  central  parts 
of  North  America  to  the  Pa-ific,  145. 

Monroe,  James,  secretary  of  state  of  the 
United  States,  declares  to  the  British 
minister  the  intention  of  his  govern- 
ment to  secure  the  possession  of  the 
month  of  the  Columbia,  agreeably  to 
the  treaty  of  Ghent,  307.  Presidrnt 
of  the  United  States;  his  message,  Je- 


490 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


clnring  the  American  continenta  not 
subject  to  colonization  by  European 
nations,  335. 

Monterey  discovered  by  Cabrillo,  and  so 
named  by  Vizcaino,  1)2.  Colony  es- 
tablished there  by  the  Spaniards,  109. 
Taken  by  a  Buenos  Ayrean  privateer, 
365.  Taken  by  on  American  squad- 
ron, under  Captain  Jones,  367. 

Morehead,  James  T.,  speecli  in  the  Sen- 
ate of  the  United  States  on  the  bill 
for  the  occupation  of  Oregon,  381. 

Navarrete.  Martin  F.  de,  chief  of  the  Hy- 
drograpnical  Department  at  Madrid ;  his 
labors  with  regard  to  the  history  of  ear- 
ly voyages  of  discovery  in  America,  84. 

Nootka  Sound  discovered  by  the  Span- 
iards under  Perez,  and  called  Port  San 
Lorenzo,  113.  Cook  enters  it  with 
his  ships,  and  calls  it  King  George's 
Sound,  153.  The  principal  rendezvous 
of  the  fur  trader  for  some  time,  167. 
Proceedings  of  Meores  at  Nootka,  174. 
The  Spaniards  determine  to  occupy  it, 
187.  Proceedings  of  the  Spaniards 
under  Martinez,  191.  Claims  of  the 
British  to  the  possession  of  the  country 
examined,  242,  256.  The  Spaniards 
abandon  it,  257.  Capture  of  the  ship 
Boston  by  the  natives,  and  murder  of 
her  crew,  268. 

Nootka  treaty,  or  convention  of  1790, 
between  Great  Britain  and  Spain,  477. 
Discussions  which  led  to  it,  202-— 209. 
(See  Meares.)  Review  of  its  stipula- 
tions, 213, 2o8.  Expired  in  1796,  258, 
318.  Not  to  be  regarded  as  a  definitive 
settlement  of  principles,  340.  Its  con- 
tinual subsistence  asserted  by  Great 
Britain,  349. 

North-West  Fur  Trading  Company  of 
Montreal  'founded;  its  system,  261. 
First  posts  established  by  it  west  of  the 
Rocky  Mountains,  291.  Purchases  the 
establishments  of  the  Pacific  Company, 
304.  Disputes  with  the  Hudson's  Bay 
Company,  323.  Union  of  the  two  com- 
panies, 325. 


Oregon,  river,  so  called  by  Carver,  sup- 
posed to  flow  from  the  central  parts  of 
North  America  to  the  Pacific,  142.  (See 
Carver.)  Name  applied  to  the  country 
drained  by  the  Columbia,  359.  De- 
scription of  Oregon,  21. 

Osslnobia,  name  given  by  Lord  Selkirk 
to  the  country  purchased  by  him  on 
the  Red  River,  324. 


Owyhee,  or  Hawaii,  the  largest  of  ths 
Sandwich  Islands,  discovered  by  Cook. 
157. 

P. 

Perez,  Juan,  voyage  from  Mexico  along 
the  north-west  coast  to  the  54th  degree 
of  latitude,  114.  Discovers  Nootka 
Sound,  called  by  him  Port  San  Loren- 
zo, 116,  153. 

P6rouBe,  Francois  G.  de  la,  voyage  along 
a  part  of  the  north-west  coast,  163. 

Phelps,  Samuel  S.,  his  speech  in  tlie 
Senate  of  the  United  States  on  the  bill 
for  the  occupation  of  Oregon,  381. 

Philippine  Islands  conquered  by  the 
Spaniards,  67. 

Poletica,  Chevalier  de,  Russian  minister 
in  the  United  States;  correspondence 
with  the  American  government  rtspect- 
ing  the  ukase  of  1821,  332. 

Promuschlenika,  general  name  for  the 
Russians  employed  in  the  service  of  the 
Russian  American  Trading  Company, 

a. 

Quadra  and  Vancouver's  Island,  29, 240. 

Quadra.     See  Bodega. 

Queen  Charlotte's  or  Washington's  Is- 
land, discovered  by  Perez,  115.  Not 
seen  by  Cook,  153,  170.  Seen  by  La 
Ptrouse,  164 ;  and  by  Dixon,  who  gave 
it  its  present  name,  164.  Its  west  coast 
first  explored  by  Gray,  who  names  it 
Washington's  Island,  199.  Described, 
29. 

Queen  Charlotte's  Sound,  name  first  given 
to  the  northern  entrance  of  the  Strait 
of  Fuca,  240. 

R. 

Rives,  William  C,  his  speech  in  the  Sen- 
ate of  the  United  States  on  tho  bill  fox 
the  occupation  of  Oregon,  384. 

Rockv  Mountains  described,  5.  First 
called  the  Shining  Mountains,  or  Moun- 
tains of  Bright  Stones,  143,  262. 

Rush,  Richard,  minister  plenipotentiary 
of  the  United  States  at  London ;  discus- 
sion with  Lord  Castlereagh  respecting 
the  restoration  of  Astoria,  308.  His 
first  negotiation  respecting  the  claims 
of  the  United  States,  314.  Concludes 
a  convention  on  the  subject  in  1818, 
315.  His  second  negotiation  on  the 
subject,  336.  Talent  and  industry  dis- 
played by  him,  340. 

Russia,  government  proposes  an  arrange- 
ment with  the  United  States  respecting 
the  trade  of  American  vessels  in  the 
North  Pacific,   275.     Forbids  foreign 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


>at  of  the 
1  by  Cook, 


lico  along 
4th  degree 
rs  Nootka 
)an  Loren- 

yage  along 
It,  163. 
>ch  in  tlie 
on  the  bill 
on,  381. 
;d    by    the 

an  minister 
respondepce 
lent  rtspect- 

me  for  the 
Brvioe  of  the 
g  Company, 


ind,  29, 240. 

lineton's  Ib- 
!,  115.  Not 
Seen  by  La 
)n,  who  gave 
[ts  west  coast 
rho  names  it 
Described, 

[le  first  given 
of  the  Strait 


in  the  Sen- 
i  tho  bill  for 

1384. 

Id,   5.    First 

Ins,  or  Moun- 

Va62. 

tnipotentiary 
don;  discus- 
h  respecting 
\,  308.  His 
the  claims 
Concludes 
ect  in  1818, 
Jtion  on  the 
industry  dis- 

i  an  arrange- 
fes  respecting 
Issels  in  the 
bids  foreign 


vesaelt  from  trading  in  the  North  Pa- 
cific, 332.  {See  <Ukaae.)  Convention 
with  tho  United  States,  342.  Treaty 
with  Great  Britain,  343.  Convention 
with  the  United  States  virtually  abro- 
gated bv  that  treaty,  343.  Refuses  to 
renew  the  fourth  article  of  the  conven- 
tion with  tho  United  States,  362. 

Russian  American  Company  established 
by  charter,  269.  Its  territories,  36. 
Its  system,  270.  Abuses  in  the  admin- 
istration of  its  possessions,  271 .  Many 
abuses  removed,  274.  Renewal  of  its 
charter ;  great  improvement  in  its  sys- 
tem, 364.  Leases  a  part  of  its  terri- 
tories to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company, 
364. 

Russians  corquer  Northern  Asia,  127. 
Their  discoveries  in  the  North  Pacific, 
131,  tt  seq.         ,    - 


San  Diego,  17.  Discovered  by  Vizcaino, 
92.  Tne  first  Spanish  colony  on  the  west 
coast  of  California  planted  there,  109. 

San  Francisco  Bay,  17.  The  northern- 
most spot  on  the  west  coast  of  America 
occupied  by  the  Spaniards  previous  to 
May,  1789,  243. 

San  Lucas,  Cape,  the  southern  extremity 
oi*  California,  15. 

San  Roqiie,  river  so  called  by  the  Span- 
iards, the  same  now  called  the  Colum- 
bia, discovered,  120,  430. 

Sandwich  Islands  described,  39.  Dis- 
covered by  Cook,  157.  Frequented  by 
the  Fur  Traders,  168.  Capture  of  the 
schooner  Fair  American  by  the  na- 
tives, 225.  Pretended  cessioi;  of  Owy- 
hee to  Great  Britain  by  Tam;'haraaha, 
251.  Tamahamaha  sovereign  </f  the 
whole  group,  268,  Death  of  Tama- 
hamaha, 329.  Christianity  introduced 
into  the  islands,  330.  Proceedings  of 
the  American  missionaries;  language 
of  the  islands,  330.  Expulsion  of  the 
Catholic  missionaries,  and  their  rein- 
statement, 371 .  The  British  occupy  the 
islands  temporarily,  373.  Diminution 
of  the  native  population,  374.  See 
Cook,  Tamahamaha,  Metcalf,  Vancou- 
ver, Tngraham. 

Santa  Barbaa  Islands,  17.  Discovered 
by  Cabrillo,  64. 

Schelikof,  Gregory,  establishes  Russian 
colonies  on  the  coasts  and  islands  of 
America,  161.  The  founder  of  the 
Russian  American  Company,  269. 

Sevier,  Ambrose,  speech  in  the  Senate  of 
the  United  States  on  the  bill  for  the 
occupation  of  Oregon,  382. 

Sitka,  or  New  Archangel,  capital  of  Rus- 
sian America,  37.  Founded  bv  Ba- 
ranof,  270. 


Snake  River.    See  Lewis  River. 

South  ViMS  in  the  Rocky  Mountains,   6. 

Discovered  by  Ashley,  357. 
Sutil  and  Mexicana,  voyage  of,  239,  241. 

See  Galiano  and  Valdes. 


Tamahamaha,  a  chief  of  note  in  Owyhee, 
168.  King  of  Owyhee,  249.  Pretend- 
ed cession  of  the  sovereignty  of  his 
island  to  the  British,  251 .  Acquires  the 
dominion  over  all  the  islands,  268.  His 
acuteness  in  trade,  269, 296.  His  death 
and  character,  329. 

Tchirikof,  Alexei,  voyages  of,  129,  130, 
133.     See  Bering. 

Treaty  of  partition  between  Spain  and 
Portugal  in  1494,  46.  Of  Saragossa, 
between  the  same  powers,  in  1529,  49. 
The  American  treaty  between  Spain 
and  England,  in  1670, 102.  Treaty  of 
Utrecht,  between  Great  Britain  and 
France,  in  1 71 3, 1 40.  No  line  of  bound- 
ary between  the  possessions  of  those 
powers  settled  by  that  treaty,  140,  281, 
436.  Family  Compact,  in  1762,  be- 
tween France  and  Spain,  103.  Dis- 
solved, 207.  Treaty  of  Versailles,  be- 
tween England,  France,  Spain,  and 
Portugal,  in  1763,  102,  278.  Nootka 
treaty,  of  1790,  between  Great  Britain 
and  Spain,  209,  258,  318,  476.  Treaty 
of  1800,  by  which  Spain  ceded  Louis- 
iana to  France,  276,  279.  Treaty  of 
1803,  by  which  France  ceded  Louis- 
iana to  the  United  States,  276,  279. 
Treaty  of  Ghent,  in  1814,  between  the 
United  States  and  Great  Britain,  306. 
Florida  treaty  between  the  United 
States  and  Spain,  in  1819,  316,  478. 
Treaty  between  Great  Britain  and  Rus- 
sia, in  1825,  342, 479.  Treaty  between 
the  United  States  and  Great  Britain^ 
settling  boundaries  east  of  the  Lake  of 
the  Woods,  377.     See  Conventions. 

Tyler,  John,  president  of  the  United 
States;  message  respecting  the  Sand- 
wich Islands,  372.  Message  respecting 
Oregon,  378. 

u. 

Ukase  of  the -Russian  government,  pro- 
hibiting vessels  of  other  nations  from 
frequenting  the  North  Pacific  coasts, 
S^.  Correspondence  respecting  it,  be- 
tween the  secretary  of  state  of  the 
United  States  and  the  Russian  plenipo- 
tentiary, at  Washington,  333.  Protest  of 
the  British  government  against  it,  335. 

Ulloa,  Francisco,  voyage  through  the 
Gulf  of  California  and  along  the  west 
coast,  68. 


49S 


GENERAL    INDEX. 


UUoa,  Autonio,  leoret  information  afford- 
ed by  him  to  the  Spaniah  ffOTemment, 
reipecting  the  atate  of  tiie  Spanish 
provincaa  in  South  America,  in  1740, 
105. 

Unaldshka  Island,  38.  Visited  by  Cook, 
155,  who  there  first  meets  with  Rus- 
sians, 156. 

United  States,  first  voyaffes  of  their  citi- 
aens  to  the  Paoifio  and  to  China,  179. 
First  voyages  to  the  north-west  coast 
of  America,  180.  Their  citizens  alone 
can  occupy  Oregon,  403. 

Urdaiieta,  Andres  de,  discovers  the  mode 
of  crossing  the  Pacific  from  west  to 
east,  67.  Supposed  to  have  discovered 
a  northern  passage  between  the  Atlan- 
tic and  Pacific,  78. 

Utah  Salt  Lake,  ao. 


V. 

Vancouver,  George,  sails  from  England 
on  an  exploring  voyage  to  the  Pacific, 
and  as  commissioner  on  the  part  of 
Great  Britain  to  receive  the  lands  and 
buildings  to  be  restored  by  Spain, 
agreea^  to  the  Nootka  convention, 
217.  Reaches  the  north-west  coast 
of  America,  2o2,  Declares  that  no 
river  or  harbor  of  consequence  is  to  be 
found  between  the  40th  and  the  46th 
decree  of  latitude,  233.  Meets  Gray, 
and  receives  from  him  an  account  of 
the  discovery  of  a  great  river,  232, 
which  he  disbelieves,  233.  Enters  the 
Strait  of  Fuca;  explores  Admiralty  In- 
let, and  takes  possession  of  the  whole 
surrounding  territory,  238.  Remarks 
on  this  act;  meets  Galiano  and  Val- 
des,  and  continues  the  survey  of  the 
■trait,  239.  Passes  through  the  strait, 
and  arrives  at  Nootka,  240.  Clajms 
the  discovery  of  the  Washington  or 
North  Marquesas  Islands  for  Hergest, 
though  he  Knew  them  to  have  been 
first  seen  by  the  Americans,  242.  Ne- 
^tiaUons  with  the  Spanish  commis- 
noner  Quadra,  242.  Clainu  the  whole 
territory  around  Nootka  for  Great  Brit- 
ain, 243.  His  unfair  synopsis  of  the 
letter  of  Gray  and  Inffraham,  244, 417. 
Receives  accounts  and  charts  of  Gray'i 


discoveries  from  Quadra;  sends  Brough- 
ton  to  examine  Columbia  River,  SM7. 
At  the  Sandwich  Islands,  executes  per- 
sons falsely  charged  with  the  murder 
of  his  otficers,  !J4*J.  Examines  a  large 
portion  of  the  north-west  coasts,  and 
returns  to  tlie  Sandwich  Islands,  250. 
Pretended  cession  of  Owyhee  to  him 
for  his  sovereign,  251.  Circumstances 
connected  with  that  affair,  252.  Re- 
turns to  the  north-west  coast,  of  which 
he  completes  the  survey,  254.  Names 
given  by  him  to  places,  255.  Returns 
to  England ;  his  death ;  great  value 
of  his  journal;  his  hatred  of  Ameri- 
cans, and  constant  injustice  towards 
them,  256. 
Viscaino,  Sebastian,  exploring  voyage 
along  the  north-west  coast,  91.  De- 
sire* to  found  colonies  on  those  coasU, 
94.    Death,  95. 


w. 

Washington's  or  Queen  Charlotte's  Is- 
land, east  coast  first  explored  by  Gray, 
199. 

Washington  or  North  Marquesas  Islands, 
discovered  by  Inffraham,  Wfi  Discov- 
ery claimed  by  Marchand,  who,  how- 
ever, admits  the  priority  of  Ingraham's 
claim,  228.  Discovery  claimea  by  Van  - 
couver  for  Hergest,  242.  Occupied  by 
the  French,  374. 

Webster,  Daniel,  secretary  of  state  of  the 
United  States,  concludes  a  treaty  with 
Lord  Ashburton,  settling  the  boundaries 
east  of  the  Lake  of  the  Woods,  378. 

Whidbey  surveys  Bulfinoh's  Harbor,  246. 

Wiccanish,  king  of  Nittinat,  167. 

Wilkes,  Charles,  his  voyage  of  explora- 
tion in  the  Pacific,  37o. 

Willamet,  river  and  valley,  26.  First 
settlemento  of  citizens  of  the  United 
States  there,  361. 

Woodbury,  Levi,  speech  in  the  Senate 
of  the  United  States  on  the  bill  for  the 
occupation  of  Oregon,  381. 

Wyeth,  Nathaniel,  endeavors  to  establish 
trading  posto  on  the  Columbia,  359. 
Great  viiae  of  hia  accounta  of  Oregon, 
360. 


da  Brough' 
Hiver,  »47. 
ecutea  per- 
he  murder 
nea  a  large 
sooata,  and 
tlanda,  250. 
Iiee  to  him 
cumatances 
,  258.    Ke- 
lt, of  which 
S4.    Names 
}.    Returns 

freat  value 
of  Araeri- 
ioe  towards 

ing  voyage 
rt,  91.  De- 
those  coasts, 


ANSWER 

TO    THE  w    '  i     »        ' 

STRICTURES  OF  MR.  THOMAS  FALCONER 

OF    LINCOLN'S    INN,         j 

ON 

THE  HISTORY  OF  OREGON  AND  CALIFORNIA, 
BY   ROBERT  OREENHOW. 


larlotte's  Is- 
red  by  Gray, 

lesas  Islands, 
afi  Discov- 
1,  who,  how- 
if  Ineraham's 
imea  b^  Van- 
Occupied  by 

)f  state  of  the 
treaty  with 

le  boundaries 

cods,  378. 
Harbor,  246. 

167. 
of  explora- 

,  26.    First 
'the  United 

the  Senate 
te  bill  for  the 

to  establish 
)lumbia,  359. 
ta  of  Oregon, 


In  publishing  the  second  edition  of  my  History  of  Oregon  and  California, 
I  think  it  proper  to  present  some  observations,  in  answer  to  the  stric- 
tures on  the  first  edition,  made  by  Mr.  T.  Falconer,  of  Lincoln's  Inn,  in 
his  work  ^*  On  the  discovery  of  the  Mississippi,  and  on  the  South-west- 
crn,  Oregon,  and  North-western  Boundary  of  the  United  States,^''  which 
appeared  in  London  in  October,  1844.  These  strictui  as  are  slightly  noticed 
in  the  preface  to  my  second  edition ;  but  observing  the  importance  as- 
signed to  them  in  London,  I  have  been  induced  to  answer  them  more  par- 
ticularly here. 

Mr.  Falconer's  book  is  a  small  duodecimo,  containing  ninety-six  pages  of 
original  matter,  and  as  many  more  of  translations  from  documents  found  by 
him  in  the  Archives  of  the  Marine  Department  of  France,  relative  to  the  dis- 
covery and  settlement  of  Louisiana.  Of  these  documents,  the  greater  and 
more  valuable  portion  are  already  well  known  in  the  United  States  ;*  and 
a  number  still  greater  of  more  interesting  papers,  on  the  same  subject,  from 
the  same  and  other  Archives,  now  lie  in  manuscript  before  me,  which  have 
evidently  escaped  Mr.  Falconer's  researches.  But  while  thus  examining  ar- 
chives, and  bringing  hidden  documents  to  light,  Mr.  Falconer  has  most 
singularly  neglected  to  cast  his  eyes  over  works  which  have  been  long  be- 
fore the  world  :  and  of  this  tieglect,  his  book  is  in  fact  the  fruit ;  for 
he  has  thus  been  enabled  to  make  many  discoveries,  new  to  himself, 
and  to  build  on  them  a  long  series  of  arguments,  which  want  nothing  but  a 
foundation  of  truth  to  render  them  irrefragable.  Some  of  his  principal 
discoveries  of  this  kind  I  will  now  proceed  to  notice ;  and  they  will  serve  to 
show  how  much  confidence  is  to  be  placed  on  his  work,  as  evidence  in 
the  important  questions  of  territorial  right.,  now  under  discussion  between 
the  British  and  American  governments. 

The  first  thirty-eight  pages  are  devoted  by  Mr.  Falconer  to  "  an  ab- 
stract of  the  events  connected  with  the  discovery,  occupation,  and  settle- 


See  Sparks's  Lite  of  La  Salle,  and  White's  New  Recopilacion. 


^ 


¥  ANSWER. 

ment  of  Louisiana,  and  of  its  transfRt*  to  the  United  States."  Upon  this 
transfer,  he  says,  page  36  : — 

"On  October  Isl,  1800,  Louisiana  was  retroccdcd  by  Spain  to  France, 
*  with  the  same  extent  that  it  now  has  in  the  hands  of  Spain,  and  that  it 
had,  when  Franco  possessed  it,  and  such  as  it  should  be  afltcr  the  treaties 
subsequently  entered  into  between  Spain  and  other  States.'  It  was  on 
act  of  retrocessioii,  but  it  transferred  so  much  less  tlian  France  originally 
held,  as  had  be-^n  shorn  from  it  by  the  treaty  of  1763,  which  gave  to 
Great  Britain,  and  through  Great  Britain  to  the  United  States,  nearly  the 
entire  eastern  bank  of  tho  Mississippi." 

This  all  correct:  now  for  tho  transfer  of  Louisiana  to  the  United 
States,  respecting  which,  Mr.  Falconer  has  made  a  most  notable  discov- 
ery.    Continuing,  ho  says  : — 

"  In  180S,  Franco  sold  Louisiana  to  tho  United  States  for  eleven  mil- 
lions of  dollars.  The  purchase  included  all  lands  '  on  the  east  [quare 
west]  side  of  the  Mississippi  river,  not  then  belonging  to  the  United 
States,  as  fur  as  the  great  chain  of  mountains  which  divide  the  waters 
flowing  into  the  Pacific,  and  those  falling  into  the  Atlantic  ocean  ;  and 
from  the  said  chain  of  mountains  to  the  Pacific  Ocean,  between  tho  ter- 
ritory claimed  by  Great  Britain  on  one  side,  and  by  Spain  on  the  other." 
— (History  of  the  Federal  Government,  by  Alden  Bradford,  Boston. 
1840.  p.  130.)  No  point  was  mentioned  where  the  line  in  the  chain 
of  fi^ountains  was  to  commence,  nor  where  the  tract  of  land  lay,  formine 
a  portion  of  Louisiana,  lying  between  the  territory  claimed  by  Spain  ana 
Great  Britain.  France  had  nothing  to  sell  but  what  constituted  Louisiana 
after  the  cession  made  to  great  Britain,  in  1763.  There  was  nevertheless 
inserted  in  this  treaty  of  sale,  a  reference  to  a  perfectly  undefined  line  to 
the  Pacific,  having  no  defined  point  of  commencement,  and  referring  to 
territor/  having  no  definable  boundary  on  the  north,  or  the  south,  or  on 
the  east." 

In  a  note  to  the  passage  quoted  in  this  paragraph,  Mr.  Falconer  says : 
— "  Mr.  Greenhow,  in  his  elaborate  work  on  the  Oregon  question,  has 
omitted  all  notice  of  this  very  important  passage." 

This  note  surprised  me  not  a  little,  as  I  was  unable  to  see  the  impor- 
tance of  a  passage  containing  merely  a  gratuitous,  and  certainly  un- 
founded, opinion  as  to  the  limits  of  Louisiana ;  and  I  could  discover  no 
reason  for  which  I  should  have  noticed  it.  But  how  much  greater  was 
my  surprise,  on  finding  that  Mr.  Falconer  had  presented  this  passage  as 
a  stipulation  in  the  treaty  of  October  1803.  That  such  a  mistake  could 
have  been  made  by  a  man  professing  to  instruct  the  world  as  to  "  the 
South-western,  Oregon,  and  North-Avestern  boundaries  of  the  United 
States,"  appeared  preposterous :  but  on  examining  farther,  no  doubt  was 
left  that  such  was  his  view,  or  the  view  which  he  endeavored  to  impress 
on  others.  In  the  many  pages  which  he  has  devoted  to  the  consideration 
of  this  point,  with  the  object  of  fixing  upon  the  United  States,  the  stigma 
of  having  procured  the  insertion  in  the  treaty  of  1803,  of  a  clause,  by 
which  they  might  afterwards,  unrighteously,  lay  claim  to  the  Oregon  ter- 
ritory, he  returns  again  and  again  to  this  important  passage^  —  his  principal 
cheval  de  hataille.  After  relating  the  particulars  of  the  Florida  treaty, 
by  which  Spain  ceded  to  the  United  States  all  her  claims  to  territories  on 


ANSWER. 


Upon  this 

to  France, 
ind  tlmt  it 
ihc  trctitics 

It  was  nn 

originally 
:h  gave  to 
nearly  the 

the  United 
bio  discov- 

eleven  mil- 
cast  [quare 
the  United 

the  waters 
Dcean  ;  and 
een  the  ter- 

the  other." 
rd,  Boston. 
I  the  chain 
ay,  formine 
y  Spain  and 
id  Louisiana 
nevertheless 
fined  line  to 

referring  to 
[south,  or  on 

:oner  says : 
jestion,  has 

the  impor- 
3rtainly  un- 
discover  no 
I  greater  was 
I  passage  as 
Utake  could 
as  to  "the 
Ithe   United 
doubt  was 
to  impress 
lonside  ration 
1,  the  stigma 
L  clause,  by 
I  Oregon  ter- 
Ihis  principal 
Irida  treaty, 
^rritories  on 


the  Pacific  side  of  America,  north  of  the  forty-second  parallel  of  latitude, 
he  says,  (p.  -IN,)  "  Thus  was  the  undefined  line  from  the  Rocky  Moun- 
tains to  the  Pacific,  inserted  in  the  treaty  with  France,  converted  into 
a  defined  line.*'  Speaking  of  the  western  limits  of  Louisiana,  (p.  GO,)  he 
says,  —  "  There  was  no  strip  of  land  to  the  west,  belonging  to  France,  us 
mentioned  in  the  treaty  of  1803,  '  lying  between  the  territory  claimed  by 
Great  liritain  on  the  one  side,  and  Spain  on  the  other.'"  — and  (page  61,) 
when  comparing  the  provisions  of  the  latter  treaty  with  those  of  the  Flor- 
ida treaty,  he  remarks  —  "The  treaty  with  France,  in  1H03,  professed  to 
give  '  a  lino '  across  some  country  lying  between  the  territory  claimed 
by  Spain  and  Great  Britain." 

It  is  needless  to  say,  to  any  one  acquainted  with  the  history  of  the 
transfer  of  Louisiana,  by  Franco  to  the  United  States,  that  the  treaty  by 
which  that  cession  was  efiectcd,  contains  n':  other  words  respecting  the 
limits  of  the  country  ceded,  than  those  extracted  from  the  treaty  of  1800, 
whereby  France  obtained  Louisiana  from  Spain,  —  viz.:  "the  colony  or 
province  of  Louisiana,  with  the  same  extent  that  it  now  has  in  the  hands 
of  Spain,  and  that  it  had  when  France  possessed  it ;  and  such  us  it  should 
bo,  after  the  treaties  subsequently  entered  into  between  Spain  and  other 
states;"  and  that  no  other  description  of  boundaries  could  ever  be  ob- 
tained from  the  French  government.  Mr.  Falconer  quoted  these  words 
himself;  but  it  is  most  charitable  to  suppose  that  he  never  saw  the  treaty, 
as  he  must  otherwise  stand  nmenuble  to  the  charge  of  having  falsely 
brought  forward  the  passage  forming  the  subject  of  these  remarks,  as  one 
of  its  stip'.lutions,  with  the  object  of  defaming  the  American  government. 

Mr.  Falconer  next  presents  a  review  of  the  accounts  in  my  history,  of 
the  discoveries  of  the  Spaniards,  of  Cook,  and  of  the  fur  traders,  as  also 
of  the  pretended  British  settlement  at  Nootka  Sound,  of  which  he  says, 
"  the  personal  facts  of  the  case  are  not  of  the  slightest  importance;" 
though  upon  those  facts  rests  the  whole  question  as  to  the  superiority 
of  the  Spanish,  or  of  the  British  claim  to  the  territory  about  Nootka. 
He  then  enters  upon  the  examination  of  the  rights  derived  from  discovery 
and  occupation  of  a  country,  and  quotes  a  large  portion  of  the  observa- 
tions, in  pages  187  to  189  of  my  history,  omitting,  however,  some  which 
have  an  important  bearing  on  the  subject.  Here  he  contends  that  "  a  set- 
tlement must  be  understood  to  mean  the  establishment  of  the  laws  or 
government  of  the  persons  making  the  settlement,  with  the  consent  and 
authority  of  the  nation  to  which  they  belong:"  that,  "discoveries  actually 
accompanied  by  occupation,  without  such  consent,  do  not  entitle  the 
settlers  to  any  of  the  rights  of  their  own  government,  or  to  exercise  any 
power,  even  of  the  most  inferior  description,  under  the  pretence  of  being 
a  colony  ;"  and  that,  "  taking  possession," — that  is  to  say,  the  declaration 
of  the  right  of  a  sovereign,  or  state,  by  one  of  its  officers,  to  the  pos- 
session of  an  unoccupied  country,  which  he  may  touch,  "  is  the  exercise  of 
a  sovereign  power,  a  distinct  act  of  legislation,  by  which  the  new  territory 
becomes  annexed  to  the  dominions  of  the  crown."  Upon  these  grounds 
he  regards  the  right  of  Great  Britain  to  the  north-west  coasts  of  America, 
as  paramount ;  forgetting,  or  "oncealingthe  facts,  that  Spanish  officers  had 
landed  on  all  those  coasts,  upd  on  each  occasion  hud  most  formally 
taken  possession,  in  the  nann.e  of  their  monarch,  and  had  made  a  settle- 


4  ANawvii. 

ment  by  direct  and  special  orders,  from  their  government,  before  any 
attempts  for  the  same  purpose  had  been  made  there  by  the  people  of  any 
other  nation  ;  and  that  no  authority  on  the  part  of  the  British  government 
was  alleged  by  the  claimants  of  Nootka  Sound,  whose  cause  was  sup'- 
ported  by  that  power  in  1790,  at  the  risk  of  a  war  with  Spain.  Equally 
careful  is  Mr.  Falconer,  to  omit  all  the  material  arguments  adduced  by 
me,  with  regard  —  to  the  controversy  between  Vancouver  and  the  Spanish 
Commissioner  at  Nootka,  in  1792—10  the  examinations  of  the  Columbia 
and  the  adjacent  coasts,  by  Gray,  and  by  the  British  navigators  —  to  the 
American  settlements  on  the  Columbia,  and  —  to  the  pretended  reservation 
of  right  by  the  British  government,  on  restoring  those  settlements  in  1815. 
On  all  these  points  I  hbive  nothing  to  change  in  the  accounts  presented  in 
my  history.  Mr.  Falconer^s  note  on  his  page  93,  so  far  as  i  can  unravel 
its  meaning,  for  it  is  rendered  somewhat  doubtful  by  omissions,  is  as 
direct  and  positive  misrepresentation  of  my  views,  as  expressed  in  page 
281  of  the  history  to  which  it  refers. 

At  page  85,  Mr.  Fal  joner  writes :  '*  On  the  north  and  north-western 
boundary  of  the  United  States,  '  Louisiana,  it  is  said,  stretched  from  the 
Gulf  of  Mexico,  to  the  northward  and  north-westward,  to  an  undefined  ex- 
tent.' (Greenhow,  p.  276.)  It  can  be  most  distinctly  demonstrated,  that 
there  is  not  the  slightest  foundation  for  this  statement." 

Now  in  the  first  place  Mr.  Falconer  has  entirely  misquoted  my  expres- 
sions. Specially  referring  to  the  state  of  things  at  the  commencement  of 
this  century,  I  say  "the  territories  of  the  United  States  were  at  that  time, 
all  included  between  the  Atlantic  Ocean  on  the  east,  and  the  Mississippi 
river  on  the  west.  In  the  north  were  the  British  Provinces ;  in  the  west 
lay  Florida  belonging  to  Spain  ;  and  beyond  the  Mississippi  the  Spaniards 
claimed  the  vast  region,  called  Louisiana,  stretching  from  the  Gulf  of  Mex- 
ico, northward  and  north-westward  to  an  undefined  extent."  These 
observations,  I  repeat,  refer  only  to  the  state  of  things  in  1800,  when 
Louisiana  embraced  no  territory  east  of  the  Mississippi,  except  New 
Orleans  and  its  vicinity  ;  and  nothing  which  I  have  seen  has  induced  me 
to  doubt  their  entire  accuracy. 

His  conclusions  on  the  subject  are  thus  summed  up  in  page  87  :  "  First 
then,  as  a  subordinate  province  partly  formed  out  of  Canada,  Louisiana 
extended  no  farther  than  the  distinct  boundaries  of  it  could  be  shown ; 
secondly,  it  never  extended  further  north  than  the  Illinois  river ;  thirdly, 
the  question  of  the  extent  of  Louisiana  was  an^ued  at  the  peace  of  1762 ; 
fourthly,  Canada  in  its  full  extient  was  ceded  ro  Great  Britain  ;and,  lastly, 
the  official  map  used  by  France  in  its  negoti-aitions  with  Great  Britain,  in- 
contestably  proves,  that  the  country  north  and  north-west  of  the  Mississip- 
pi was  ceded  as  thp  Pr'^vince  of  Canada.  No  better  authority  for  the 
above  statement  can  be  cited,  than  M.  Duflot  de  Mofras,  a  gentleman  at- 
tached to  the  French  legation  at  Mexico,  and  the  author  of  a  work  on 
California,  published  by  order  of  the  French  Government  —  to  avoid 
the  possibility  of  misinterpretation,  bii*  own  words  cited." 

Of  these  conclusions  it  will  be  necr>ssary  to  examine  only  the  last,  to 
which  the  others  are  subordinate  ;  it  is  thus  farther  explained  by  Mr.  Fal- 
coner. "  By  the  seventh  article  of  this  cession"  [the  treaty  of  1763  be- 
tween France  and  Great  Britain]  "  the  line  drawn  from  the  source  of  the 


ofbre  any 
)lo  of  any 
)vemment 

wnn  sup- 
Equally 
ilduced  by 
)e  Spanish 

Columbia 
a  —  to  the 
reservation 
19  in  1815. 
resented  in 
!an  unravel 
isions,  is  as 
,ed  in  page 

,rth-wC9tern 
d  from  the 
idefmed  ex- 
8t rated,  that 

my  expres- 
jncement  of 
at  that  time, 
!  Mississippi 
I  in  the  west 
le  Spaniards 
ulfofMex- 
These 
800,  when 
xcept  New 
induced  me 

87 :    "  First 
a,  Louisiana 
)e  shown; 
rer;  thirdly, 
ze  of  1762 ; 
and,  lastly, 
Britain,  in- 
le  Mississip- 
rity  for  the 
ntleman  at- 
a  work  on 
—  to  avoid 

the  last,  to 

by  Mr.  Fal- 

of  1763  be- 

lurce  of  the 


AKBWCll.  m 

River  Mississippi,  to  the  south,  gave  to  Groat  Britain  all  the  lands  on  the 
east  bank  of  the  river,  and  secured  to  Franco  and  through  it  to  Spain,  the 
territory  west  of  the  same  line.  But  the  territory  of  Canada  north  of  the 
source  of  that  river,  (47°  10'  N.  L.)  and  north  of  a  lino,  running  west  of 
the  source  of  the  river,  was  lefl  as  a  part  of  Canada,  of  which  it  most  in- 
disputably formed  a  portion." 

Mr.  Falconer  hero  places  his  meaning  beyond  question.  Has  he  ever 
read  the  charter  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  ?  Certainly  not,  or  ho 
would  never  have  made  this  assertion.  That  charter  was  granted  by  King 
Charles  tho  Second  in  1669  ;  it  convoys  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company 
in  full  possession,  and  almost  in  sovereignty,  **■  all  those  seas,  straits,  and 
bays,  rivers,  lakes,  creeks  and  sounds,  in  whatsoever  latitude  they  shall  be, 
that  lie  within  the  entrance  of  tho  Straits,  commonly  called  Hudson's 
Straits,  together  with  all  the  lands,  countries,  and  territories,  upon  the 
coast  and  confines  of  tho  seas,  straits,  bays,  lakes,  rivers,  creeks,  and 
sounds  aforesaid,  which  are  not  actually  possessed  by  any  of  our  subjects, 
or  by  the  subjects  of  any  other  Christian  prince  or  state."  The  right 
to  these  waters  and  territories  was  maintained  by  Great  Britain  in  her 
wars  with  France,  and  was  confirmed  in  the  treaty  of  Utrecht,  and  in  all  sub- 
sequent treaties  between  those  powers  relative  to  territories  in  America  so 
long  as  France  held  any  possessions  on  tho  northern  continent.  The  ter- 
ritories thus  granted  to  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  extend  wei>t  of  the 
Mississippi,  and  south  of  the  latitude  of  the  sources  of  that  river,  and  they 
were  always  claimed  and  used  by  that  body  until  1818,  when  the  49th 
parallel  of  latitude  was  adopted  by  convention  between  Great  Britain  and 
the  United  States,  as  the  dividing  line  between  their  possessions  in  that 
part  of  America.  Until  the  conclusion  of  that  convention,  the  nothern 
boundaries  of  Louisiana  remained  undefined  —  that  is,  undetermined  by  ac- 
cord of  the  parties  interested,  as  I  prove  clearly  in  my  pages  281  and  436. 

Will  Mr.  Falconer  now  inuintain  that  the  territories,  thus  granted  to 
the  Hudson's  Bay  Cf^npany  m  1669,  most  indisputably  formed  a  portion 
of  Canada,  and  theretV>rc  belonged  to  France  until  1762  ?  If  not,  his  whole 
theory  as  to  the  v^stern  extension  of  Canada  falls  to  the  ground.  Does 
he  not  see,  more<tTver.  that  if  his  argument  be  admitted,  by  the  same  rule 
Louisiana  musi  «isc>  necessarily  have  extended  to  the  Pacific,  «^mbracing 
the  whole  low*^  portion  and  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia,  which  hiis  govern- 
ment is  now  .so  anxious  to  secure  ? 

What  "  the  official  map  used  by  France,  in  its  negotiations  with  Great 
Britain"  was,  we  are  to  learn  from  M.  Dufloi  de  Mofras.  On  referring 
to  the  quotation  from  that  author,  we  see,  fi  st  that,  "  All  the  cJd  maps, 
in  fact,  in  accordance  with  the  authors  most  worths  of  credit,  carry  the 
limits  of  the  French  possessions  of  Canada  to  the  Soi  ih  Sea."  * 

It  is  needless  to  waste  time  on  such  an  assertion  ;  f  le  erroneousness  of 
which,  is  shown  by  every  old  atlas.  The  "  author  mcH  worthy  of  credit.,''* 
cited  by  M.  de  Mofras,  is  L'Escarbot,  in  whose  history  of  New  France, 
printed  in  1617,  after  the  settlement  of  Florida,  New  Mexico,  Virginia 
and  the  New  Netherlands,  the  whole  of  the  American  continent  and 

•"  Toutet  let  anciennet  cartel,  en  effet  d'accord  avec  les  auteurs  les  plus  averts 
n'^rietent  qu'k  la  mer  du  Sud,  la  limite  des  possession  Francaises  du  Canada." 


6 


▲NSWiiB. 


islands  north  of  the  Tropic  of  Cancer,  is  claimed  as  New  France.  M.  de 
Mofras  continues  :  *'  Finally  in  a  map,  engraved  in  1757,  and  annexed  to 
the  Memoirs  of  the  Commissaries  of  the  kings  of  France  and  England  in 
America,  it  may  be  seen  beyond  doubt  that  New  France  extended  to  the 
Pacific  ;  and  on  it  will  be  found  on  the  west  coast  of  America,  under  the 
46th  degree  of  latitude,  a  great  river  traced  in  a  direction  exactly  conforma* 
ble  with  that  of  the  river  Columbia."* 

The  work  last  cited,  is  a  collection  of  statements,  presented  respect- 
ively by  the  Commissaries  of  France  and  England,  appointed  under  the 
treaty  of  Aix  la  Chapelie  in  1748,  to  settle  the  limits  of  certain  territories 
in  America.  It  is  well  known,  and  may  be  found  in  ail  large  libraries. 
There  are  not  less  than  four  copies  of  it  in  Washington.  If  Mr.  Falconer 
will  take  the  trouble  to  examine  it,  he  will  find  the  map  in  the  fourth  vol- 
ume, as  specially  stated  by  M.  de  Mofras,  being  indeed  the  only  one  in 
the  collection,  embracing  the  western  part  of  America ;  bat  he  will  as-~ 
suredly  not  find  on  it  any  river  entering  the  Pacific  from  the  interior  of 
America,  near  the  46tA  degree  of  latitude,  nor  any  river  resembling  the 
Columbia,  nor  any  allusion  to  Canada  or  New  France,  nor  any  sign 
toheitsoever  of  the  existence  of  French  dominion  in  America.  The  map 
was  in  fact,  drawn  and  presented  by  the  French  Commissaries,  as 
its  title  purports,  with  the  object  of  exposing  the  extravagant  preten- 
sions of  the  British  in  America ;  and  the  whole  division  of  the  con- 
tinent from  sea  to  sea,  between  the  40th  and  the  48th  parallels  of  latitude,  in- 
cluding, of  course,  nearly  all  Canada,  appears  on  it  as  New  England. 
Yet  this  map  Mr.  Falconer  presents  as  "  the  official  majftised  by  France,  in 
its  negotiations  with  Great  Britain,"*^  (mistaking,  as  the  context  abundantly 
shows,  the  Commissaries  appointed  under  the  treaty  of  Aix  la  Chapelie, 
for  the  Plenipotentiaries  who  signed  the  treaty  of  Paris ;)  and  as  incontes- 
tably  proving  '*  that  the  country  north  and  north-west  of  the  Mississippi, 
was  ceded  as  the  province  of  Canada.''"' 

The  quotations  from  M.  Duflot  de  Mofras,  are  made  from  some  articles 
by  him  on  Oregon,  which  appeared  in  the  Paris  Journal  des  Debats.  This 
gentleman  has  since  published,  under  the  auspices  of  the  French  govern- 
ment, a  work  on  Oregon  and  California,  professing  to  be  the  results  of 
personal  examination  of  those  countries,  and  of  subsequent  labors  and  re- 
searches ;  but  in  reality  containing  little  else  than  extracts  from  my  his- 
tory, with  alterations  to  suit  the  views  of  the  author.  The  conclusions  of 
M.  de  Mofras  are  —  that  Canada  certainly  extended  to  the  Pacific  —  that 
the  Canadians  are  now  as  good  Frenchmen  as  in  the  days  of  Beauharnais 
—  that  they  will  soon  throw  off"  the  detested  yoke  of  Great  Britain,  and 
will  then  form  a  grand  Franco  Canadian  Empire,  extending  from  the  At- 
lantic to  the  Pacific,  and  embracing  Oregon,  which  will  be  bound  to 
France  by  every  tie  of  religion,  feeling  and  policy. 

It  will  be  unnecessary  to  pursue  farther,  the  evidence  of  Mr.  Falconer's 


•  "  Enfin,  flans  une  carte  grav6e  en  nS"",  at  annex6e  aux  Memoires  des  Commis- 
snires  des  Rois  de  France  et  d'Angleterre  en  Amerique,  en  pent  constater,  que  la 
Novelle  France  9'6tendait  JHsqiie  a  la  mer  Paciflque  ;  et  1  on  y  trouve,  A  la  cote 
ouest  de  I'Amerique,  sous  le  40°  degr6,  une  grand  riviere,  tracfee  dans  une  direction 
exactement  confortne  &  celle  du  Rio  Columbia." 


m 


ANSWEB. 


M.  de 
exed  to 
land  ia 
d  to  tha 
der  the 
oforma' 

respect- 
ider  the 
rritories 
ibraries. 
falconer 
irth  vol" 
y  one  in 
will  as« 
'erior  of 
')Ung  the 
my  sign 
Phe  map 
ariea,  as 
t  preten- 
the  con- 
titude,  in- 
England. 
France,  in 
iundantly 
Chapelle, 
incontes- 
ssissippi, 

articles 
.  This 
govern- 
esults  of 
and  re- 
my  his- 
usions  of 
ic  —  that 
luharnais 
tain,  and 
a  the  At- 
)ound  to 


incompetency  to  treat  the  important  matters  to  which  he  has  devoted  his 
attention  in  this  volume ;  or  to  expose  his  mistakes,  misquotations,  and  mis- 
representations  of  all  kinds.  In  his  concluding  page,  he  declares  that"  It 
is  not  honorable,  while  the  title  to  the  territory  of  Oregon  is  undetermined 
between  the  respective  governments,  to  urge  measures  to  populate  it  with 
American  citizens,  in  order  to  give  facilities  for  its  occupation  at  a  future 
period."  On  this  point,  I  will  simply  refer  him  to  the  letters  addressed  by 
Messrs.  Pelly  and  Simpson,  the  governors  of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company, 
to  thfi  Colonial  Department,  in  1837,  soliciting  a  renewal  of  their  charter, 
as  published  by  order  of  parliament  in  1840,  where  he  will  find,  that  those 
gentlemen  claimed  and  received  the  aid  and  consideration  of  government 
for  their  energy  and  success  in  expelling  the  Americans  from  the  Colum- 
bia regions,  and  forming  settlements  there,  by  means  of  which  they  were 
rapidly  converting  Oregon  into  a  British  colot\y.  Since  that  period 
things  have  changed  ;  and  nothing  but  prudence  is  required,  on  the  part  of 
the  American  government,  to  convert  Oregon,  ere  long,  into  i  State  of  the 
Federal  Union. 

ROBERT  GREENHOW. 
Washington,  April,  1845. 


LIBRARY 
^^ ^ 


alconer's 


1  Commis- 

er,  que  la 

k  la  cdte 

direction 


